UPDATE: Oppenheimer Initiates Coverage On Weatherford International On Positive Long-Term Outlook

In a report published Wednesday, Oppenheimer analyst James Schumm initiated coverage on Weatherford International PLC (NYSE: WFT) with an Outperform rating and $19.00 price target.

In the report, Oppenheimer noted, “We are initiating coverage of Weatherford (WFT) with an Outperform rating and a $19 price target. While recent returns and free cash flow generation have been disappointing, the company is orchestrating a change of culture to focus on profitability and cash generation. This evolution may take longer than some would hope for, but tangible progress has been made as free cash flow is expected to turn positive in 2015 and likely keep the upward momentum into 2016. We believe the recent stock price weakness gives investors another opportunity to play this emerging turnaround story. Follow the money (cash flows) to track progress in 2015 as operating earnings for this company can be misleading.”

Weatherford International closed on Tuesday at $13.05.