Sterling Capital Management LLC Trims Position in Valaris Limited $VAL

Sterling Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) by 86.1% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,081 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,918 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Valaris were worth $204,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new position in Valaris during the 3rd quarter valued at $41,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in shares of Valaris by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,133 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Valaris by 240.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $78,000 after buying an additional 1,308 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Valaris during the fourth quarter valued at about $99,000. Finally, Longview Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Valaris during the first quarter valued at about $105,000. Institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Valaris from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. BTIG Research downgraded Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Valaris from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $63.19.

Valaris Stock Up 0.8%

VAL traded up $0.58 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $74.11. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 31,855 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,267,381. Valaris Limited has a 1 year low of $43.53 and a 1 year high of $114.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $90.61 and its 200-day moving average is $81.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.19 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The company reported ($0.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by ($0.19). Valaris had a net margin of 45.37% and a return on equity of 12.31%. The business had revenue of $465.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $443.75 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.53) earnings per share. Valaris’s revenue for the quarter was down 25.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Valaris Limited will post 3.18 EPS for the current year.

About Valaris

Valaris PLC is a leading provider of offshore drilling services to the global energy industry. The company operates a diverse fleet of mobile offshore drilling units, including drillships, semisubmersibles and jackup rigs, designed to support exploration and production activities in deepwater, ultra-deepwater and harsh‐environment settings. Valaris serves a wide range of international oil and gas customers, offering turnkey drilling solutions, project management and advanced technology integration to enhance operational efficiency and safety.

Headquartered in Houston, Texas, Valaris maintains a significant presence in key offshore basins around the world.