Morgan Stanley Overweight On Weatherford International (WFT)

Morgan Stanley has an Overweight rating on shares of Weatherford International WFT. In a note to investors, Morgan Stanley writes, "WFT posted operating EPS of $0.10/shr vs. MS and consensus of $0.18/shr. A series of “one time” charges were mentioned to justify the $0.08/shr shortfall between the reported number and their previous guidance of $0.18/shr: political turmoil in MENA, unfavorable weather conditions in Australia, China, the North Sea and Russia, and a new tax burden in Colombia. North America revenues grew 9%, but somewhat surprisingly, EBIT margin dropped 85bps in the wake of cold winter in the US. Int'l revenues fell 9% dragging margins down to less than 5%, i.e. 740bps Q/Q drop. Management guided 2Q11 to $0.15-0.17, or about 20% below current FactSet consensus of $0.21. Trading color: We expect shares to be under pressure this morning as the company continues to under-deliver relative to its main competitors. We would be strong buyers on any weakness plunging the shares below the $20-mark." Shares of WFT are down 42 cents to $20.71, a loss of nearly 2% this morning.