Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Precision Drilling Corporation (NYSE:PDS) (TSE:PD)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $75.43 and last traded at $75.2250, with a volume of 5617 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $73.68.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on PDS shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Precision Drilling from $110.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 24th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Precision Drilling from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, October 26th. Zacks Research lowered Precision Drilling from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. Finally, TD Securities reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Precision Drilling in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.00.

Precision Drilling Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $65.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $58.88. The stock has a market cap of $979.24 million, a P/E ratio of 28.13 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41.

Precision Drilling (NYSE:PDS) (TSE:PD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The oil and gas company reported ($0.37) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($1.57). The company had revenue of $331.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.38 million. Precision Drilling had a return on equity of 3.44% and a net margin of 3.17%. On average, equities analysts expect that Precision Drilling Corporation will post 7.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PDS. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its stake in shares of Precision Drilling by 275.5% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 387,598 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $18,338,000 after buying an additional 284,384 shares during the last quarter. Aegis Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Precision Drilling by 110.0% during the third quarter. Aegis Financial Corp now owns 452,359 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,486,000 after buying an additional 236,963 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in shares of Precision Drilling by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management now owns 245,981 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $13,851,000 after purchasing an additional 122,974 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Precision Drilling by 147.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 100,176 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,646,000 after acquiring an additional 59,706 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC increased its position in shares of Precision Drilling by 97.5% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 118,891 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,699,000 after purchasing an additional 58,680 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 48.86% of the company’s stock.

About Precision Drilling

Precision Drilling Corporation (NYSE: PDS) is a Calgary, Alberta–based oilfield services company that has provided drilling solutions since its founding in 1951. With more than seven decades of industry experience, the company delivers contract drilling services, directional and horizontal drilling, well servicing, and a suite of specialized equipment designed to meet the evolving needs of exploration and production companies worldwide.

The company’s core business activities include operating a fleet of onshore drilling rigs, offering managed pressure drilling, measurement-while-drilling (MWD) and logging-while-drilling (LWD) services, and providing completion and workover rigs.