Franklin Resources Inc. Buys 1,634 Shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) by 4.6% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 37,429 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,634 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Valaris were worth $1,956,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Centiva Capital LP bought a new position in Valaris during the third quarter worth $930,000. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in Valaris during the third quarter worth about $1,862,000. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Valaris by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 137,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,670,000 after buying an additional 17,690 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valaris in the 2nd quarter valued at $3,652,000. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in Valaris by 20.4% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 670,885 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,412,000 after buying an additional 113,509 shares during the last quarter. 96.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Valaris

In related news, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,118.76. The trade was a 51.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on VAL. Benchmark lowered Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $49.00 price objective (down from $59.00) on shares of Valaris in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup lowered shares of Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $58.00 to $47.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Valaris in a research report on Friday, December 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $40.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.33.

Valaris Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of VAL stock opened at $41.14 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $46.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.09. Valaris Limited has a 1 year low of $39.90 and a 1 year high of $84.20.

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.