Valaris (NYSE:VAL) Earns “Equal Weight” Rating from Barclays

Valaris (NYSE:VAL)‘s stock had its “equal weight” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Barclays in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have a $49.00 target price on the stock, down from their prior target price of $59.00. Barclays‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 19.75% from the stock’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup cut shares of Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $58.00 to $47.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Benchmark downgraded Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Valaris in a research report on Friday, December 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Valaris has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $64.33.

Valaris Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE VAL opened at $40.92 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $47.92 and its 200 day moving average is $59.89. Valaris has a 52 week low of $40.73 and a 52 week high of $84.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $2.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at Valaris

In other news, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.77, for a total value of $1,450,020.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 24,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,118.76. This represents a 51.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valaris

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lingotto Investment Management LLP lifted its position in Valaris by 1.2% during the second quarter. Lingotto Investment Management LLP now owns 3,040,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,525,000 after buying an additional 36,870 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Valaris by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,446,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $136,365,000 after acquiring an additional 112,216 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in Valaris by 5.9% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,882,846 shares of the company’s stock worth $140,272,000 after acquiring an additional 105,330 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Valaris by 4.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,519,644 shares of the company’s stock worth $84,736,000 after acquiring an additional 66,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Valaris by 23.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,188,973 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,573,000 after purchasing an additional 225,283 shares during the period. 96.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Valaris

Valaris Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides offshore contract drilling services Gulf of Mexico, South America, North Sea, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through four segments: Floaters, Jackups, ARO, and Other. It owns an offshore drilling rig fleet, which include drillships, dynamically positioned semisubmersible rigs, moored semisubmersible rig, and jackup rigs.