Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) Downgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong Sell”

Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

VTOL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wall Street Zen cut Bristow Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Bristow Group in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bristow Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, JonesTrading initiated coverage on Bristow Group in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $60.00.

Bristow Group Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of VTOL opened at $42.14 on Tuesday. Bristow Group has a 52 week low of $28.03 and a 52 week high of $50.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.97 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 1.79 and a current ratio of 2.15. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $46.23 and a 200-day moving average of $42.33.

Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by ($0.57). Bristow Group had a net margin of 7.51% and a return on equity of 11.10%. The firm had revenue of $388.71 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $383.68 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Bristow Group will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Bristow Group

In related news, COO Stuart Stavley sold 24,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.02, for a total transaction of $1,171,174.16. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 85,790 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,033,845.80. This trade represents a 22.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jennifer Dawn Whalen sold 26,667 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.90, for a total value of $1,250,682.30. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 108,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,076,502.90. This represents a 19.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 61,104 shares of company stock worth $2,869,206 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 13.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Amalgamated Bank raised its position in shares of Bristow Group by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 7,253 shares of the company’s stock worth $262,000 after acquiring an additional 256 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Bristow Group by 8.2% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $211,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Bristow Group by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 21,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $801,000 after acquiring an additional 368 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Bristow Group by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 79,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,900,000 after acquiring an additional 402 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Bristow Group by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,592 shares of the company’s stock worth $461,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. 93.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Bristow Group

Bristow Group Inc is a global provider of helicopter services to the offshore energy industry and search-and-rescue (SAR) operations worldwide. The company specializes in the safe and efficient transport of personnel, equipment and supplies to offshore oil and gas platforms, as well as emergency response and medevac services. Bristow’s operations support exploration, production and decommissioning activities, helping energy companies maintain continuity of production in some of the world’s most challenging environments.

The company maintains a diverse fleet of turbine-powered helicopters, including medium- and heavy-lift aircraft such as the Sikorsky S-92, Airbus H225 (formerly EC225) and Leonardo AW189.