Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides drilling and completion services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies in the United States, Canada, Colombia, and internationally.
Positioning no disclosures inside 60 days, left as found
Options no verdict drawn today, left as found
Ethical passes the values gate
Price11.42 USD
Fair value7.85
Ethical score70.0/100
Our investment reviews on this name
2026-09-10Read Accumulation11.75-2.8% to today
2026-07-02Read Distribution11.49-0.6% to today ✓
Our analytic regime reads on this name, dated and marked against the screened price. Small sample per name, and separate from the daily-framework accuracy on the Track Record page.
Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. holds its Markdown at $11.42. The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 11 days.
As held on the ledger · 2026-09-21
Phase
Markdown · caution
Quantitative state
The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 11 days
Price at the screen
$11.42
Valuation
N/A trailing · 34.33 forward price to earnings
Values screen
PASS· score 70.0
Beta
0.67
The Workings
Five Screens, Shown in Full
Full pass across all five screens. This security clears the Titan Ethical Standard: its business and its balance sheet both stay inside the lines.
Test
Figure
Limit
What it means
Status
Business activity
Permissible
Core business clean
Its core business isn't built on prohibited lines: no gambling, alcohol, tobacco, weapons, or interest-based lending.
Pass
Debt load
22.99%
Below 33%
Interest-bearing debt is just 23.0% of its assets, well under the one-third ceiling: it does not run on borrowed money.
Pass
Interest-bearing cash
0.00%
Below 33%
Cash held in interest-bearing accounts and securities is 0.0% of assets, under the one-third limit.
Pass
Receivables
20.50%
Below 49%
Money owed to the company is 20.5% of assets, under the 49% limit.
Pass
Revenue purity
0.14%
Below 5%
Only 0.1% of revenue comes from non-compliant sources, under the 5% line.
Pass
Five checks adapted from AAOIFI screening standards: business activity plus four balance-sheet ratios. All five must pass for ethical clearance. Every figure is arithmetic on public accounts, not judgement.
Fair value range in USD, drawn from the 2026-09-21 screen. The gold marker is the market price at the same screen. The price runs 31.3% above the base estimate.
Third-party analyst targets: 14 covering, consensus Buy. The average target sits +20% from the screen price.
Reading the gap · Our more conservative model reads it as fully-to-richly valued here, while the Street is more bullish: a quality-at-a-fair-price name rather than a deep-value one.
Price History & Projections
Where it has been, where the models see it going. History from market close data; projection points are our fair-value estimates and third-party analyst targets, dated to the 2026-09-21 screen.
Fair value and rating are our own model estimates; the Street's range reflects third-party analyst estimates. Analysis, not advice.
The Business, in Plain Words
Oil rigs chase booms that rarely last
Picture a contractor whose entire order book vanishes the moment crude dips below a certain line. Patterson-UTI supplies the rigs and crews that drill those wells, yet revenue is already down 13 percent while the business posts a 3 percent loss and negative 4 percent return on equity. At 59.7 times forward earnings the shares still price in a recovery that has not arrived, leaving our fair value 32 percent below the current quote.
The cyclical trap is simple. Low multiples at what may prove peak earnings look cheap only until the next downturn resets utilisation and pricing. With no durable moat and an opportunity rating of none, the stock offers exposure to oil-price volatility without the margin of safety that would justify holding through the cycle.
Ethical screens clear, yet the combination of stretched valuation, shrinking activity and structural earnings risk keeps us on the sidelines. Analysis, not advice.
The risks · The main risks here are ordinary market swings and the chance our fair-value read proves too optimistic.
Plain-English interpretation of our own screen data. Analysis, not advice.
Where & How to Trade
PTEN trades on Nasdaq. As a listed security it is accessible through almost any international broker offering its home market. New to this, or investing from abroad? Our guide to accessing global markets covers brokers, currencies and the practical steps.
The framework has shifted from distribution to accumulation since the last review. Smart money appears to be quietly building positions. This typically precedes a markup phase. Price has moved up 19.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows good risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it C. Technically it is holding around 47% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading neutral. Over the past year the shares are up 105%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 28%. The street (14 analysts) rates it buy, with a mean price target of $13.
2026-08-09Distribution$9.87-14.1%Entry 4
The framework reads distribution. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Price has moved down 14.1% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it C. Technically it is holding around 47% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading neutral. Over the past year the shares are up 105%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 28%. The street (14 analysts) rates it buy, with a mean price target of $13.
2026-07-18Distribution$11.49+0.0%Entry 3
The framework reads distribution. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it C. Technically it is holding around 47% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading neutral. Over the past year the shares are up 105%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 28%. The street (14 analysts) rates it buy, with a mean price target of $13.
2026-07-03Distribution$11.49+0.0%Entry 2
The framework reads distribution. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen (70). The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns.
2026-07-02Distribution$11.49Entry 1
The framework reads distribution. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen (70). The risk-adjusted return profile shows modest positive risk-adjusted returns.
Each entry above was written on its date, before the outcome. A journal you can prune is not a journal.