Valaris (NYSE:VAL) Sets New 52-Week Low Following Analyst Downgrade

Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) 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. The stock had previously closed at $50.35.

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

Insider Activity

In related 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 transaction of $1,705,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 108,342 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,160,326.12. This 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 can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Davor Vukadin sold 15,403 shares of Valaris stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 9th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $755,237.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Gilles Luca sold 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.86, for a total value of $1,705,800.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 108,342 shares in the company, valued at $6,160,326.12. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 71,403 shares of company stock worth $4,028,246 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Valaris

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Valaris by 180.8% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 365 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valaris during the 1st quarter worth about $149,000. Choreo LLC purchased a new position in shares of Valaris during the 2nd quarter worth about $204,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Valaris during the 2nd quarter valued at about $204,000. Finally, Scientech Research LLC purchased a new stake in Valaris in the 2nd quarter worth about $211,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

Valaris Trading Up 2.5 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $56.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $66.85. The firm has a market cap of $3.67 billion, a P/E 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 quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $610.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $545.00 million. As a group, research analysts predict that Valaris Limited will post 4.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.