Valaris (NYSE:VAL) Cut to Hold at Benchmark

Benchmark cut shares of Valaris (NYSE:VAL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Pickering Energy Partners lowered shares of Valaris from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of Valaris from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 11th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Valaris from $98.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Valaris from $95.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Valaris currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.33.

Valaris Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE VAL opened at $51.93 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.73 and a current ratio of 1.73. Valaris has a 1 year low of $49.62 and a 1 year high of $84.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $57.38 and its 200 day moving average price is $67.57.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $1.07. The business had revenue of $610.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $545.00 million. Valaris had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 49.33%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Valaris will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.77, for a total transaction of $1,450,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 24,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,118.76. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Valaris news, COO Gilles Luca sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $6,160,326.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.77, for a total transaction of $1,450,020.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 24,388 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,360,118.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 71,403 shares of company stock valued at $4,028,246. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valaris

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund purchased a new position in Valaris in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,884,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted 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 valued at $88,573,000 after purchasing an additional 225,283 shares during the last quarter. Condire Management LP grew its stake in Valaris by 14.7% during the 1st quarter. Condire Management LP now owns 1,452,097 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,285,000 after purchasing an additional 186,076 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Valaris by 338.5% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 236,379 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,426,000 after purchasing an additional 182,467 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new position in shares of Valaris in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $13,306,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

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.