Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) Stock Price Up 5.1% – Still a Buy?

Bristow Group Inc. (NYSE:VTOL)’s share price traded up 5.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The stock traded as high as $40.28 and last traded at $40.2260. Approximately 94,085 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average session volume of 232,265 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VTOL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Bristow Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 6th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $63.00 price target on shares of Bristow Group in a research note on Thursday, November 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Bristow Group from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.00.

Bristow Group Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.99. The firm has a market cap of $1.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.42 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $40.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $43.89.

Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by ($0.22). The business had revenue of $437.92 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $443.25 million. Bristow Group had a return on equity of 7.47% and a net margin of 4.98%. Sell-side analysts expect that Bristow Group Inc. will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Bristow Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a $0.1250 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Bristow Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 18.66%.

Insider Transactions at Bristow Group

In related news, insider Alternative Asset Manage Solus sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.85, for a total transaction of $687,750.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,861,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $131,213,346.60. This trade represents a 0.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Stuart Stavley sold 10,218 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.20, for a total value of $472,071.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 64,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,990,988. The trade was a 13.63% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 53,858 shares of company stock valued at $2,431,989. Corporate insiders own 12.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bristow Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Ieq Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Bristow Group by 37.4% during the third quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 37,155 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,513,000 after buying an additional 10,115 shares during the last quarter. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Bristow Group by 25.3% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 532,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,634,000 after buying an additional 107,507 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Bristow Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $84,000. Norwood Investment Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Bristow Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,120,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Bristow Group by 62.8% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 114,760 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,673,000 after acquiring an additional 44,247 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.29% of the company’s stock.

About Bristow Group

Bristow Group, Inc. provides helicopter and other aviation services, primarily supporting offshore energy operations and government customers. Its services include transporting personnel and supplies to offshore installations, as well as search-and-rescue operations and related aviation support. The company serves customers across several regions, including the Americas, Europe, Africa and Australia. Its operations include contracted search-and-rescue services in parts of Europe and the United Kingdom, alongside aviation services for the energy industry.