Valaris (NYSE:VAL) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Thursday.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating and issued a $49.00 target price (down from $59.00) on shares of Valaris in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI cut shares of Valaris from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and cut their target price for the company from $87.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Valaris from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on shares of Valaris in a research note on Friday, December 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.50.

Valaris Price Performance

VAL stock opened at $41.80 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $45.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.70. 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 stock has a market cap of $2.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.13 and a beta of 1.10. Valaris has a fifty-two week low of $39.90 and a fifty-two week high of $84.20.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.68. Valaris had a net margin of 15.81% and a return on equity of 17.67%. The business had revenue of $584.40 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $578.01 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that Valaris will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Valaris

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Valaris in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its position in Valaris by 518.3% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 742 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 622 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in shares of Valaris by 395.0% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 1,177 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Valaris by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,758 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 511 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valaris by 326.9% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,874 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after buying an additional 1,435 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

Valaris Company Profile

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.