Marshall Wace LLP Acquires 105,330 Shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,882,846 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 105,330 shares during the quarter. Marshall Wace LLP owned 2.60% of Valaris worth $140,272,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Valaris by 180.8% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 365 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its stake in Valaris by 88.3% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,747 shares of the company’s stock valued at $120,000 after purchasing an additional 819 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Valaris in the first quarter valued at approximately $149,000. Choreo LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valaris during the second quarter worth $204,000. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valaris during the second quarter worth $204,000. 96.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valaris Price Performance

Valaris stock opened at $55.45 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 4.85 and a beta of 1.17. Valaris Limited has a 52-week low of $53.06 and a 52-week high of $84.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.73. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $65.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $69.86.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $1.07. Valaris had a net margin of 49.33% and a return on equity of 12.58%. The business had revenue of $610.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $545.00 million. On average, equities analysts predict that Valaris Limited will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on VAL. Barclays reduced their price objective on Valaris from $98.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of Valaris in a report on Monday, August 5th. Pickering Energy Partners lowered shares of Valaris from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Valaris from $95.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $91.40.

Insider Activity at Valaris

In related news, SVP Davor Vukadin sold 15,403 shares of Valaris stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.64, for a total value of $872,425.92. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $755,237.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, COO Gilles Luca sold 30,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.86, for a total value of $1,705,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 108,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,160,326.12. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Davor Vukadin sold 15,403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.64, for a total transaction of $872,425.92. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,334 shares in the company, valued at $755,237.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.