Valaris (NYSE:VAL) Reaches New 1-Year Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $91.00 to $61.00. Barclays currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Valaris traded as low as $49.16 and last traded at $49.21, with a volume of 40122 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $50.35.

VAL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Valaris from $62.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Pickering Energy Partners downgraded shares of Valaris from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Citigroup cut their price target on Valaris from $95.00 to $71.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, Benchmark lowered Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $81.33.

Insider Transactions at Valaris

In related news, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of Valaris 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 24,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,118.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Valaris news, SVP Davor Vukadin sold 15,403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $755,237.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 24,388 shares in the company, valued at $1,360,118.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 71,403 shares of company stock valued at $4,028,246. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valaris

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Valaris by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 1,893,667 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,849,000 after buying an additional 77,490 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Valaris by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 15,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,159,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,213,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Lee Johnson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Valaris in the 1st quarter worth $7,355,000. Finally, Privium Fund Management B.V. lifted its stake in Valaris by 15.8% in the first quarter. Privium Fund Management B.V. now owns 8,134 shares of the company’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 1,107 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

Valaris Trading Up 2.5 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $56.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.67 billion, a PE ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a quick ratio of 1.73, a current ratio of 1.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.96 by $1.07. Valaris had a return on equity of 12.58% and a net margin of 49.33%. The company had revenue of $610.10 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $545.00 million. Equities analysts expect that Valaris Limited will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current year.

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.