Valaris (NYSE:VAL) Stock Dropped to “Sell” by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Valaris (NYSE:VAL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Valaris from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Valaris from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $68.50.

Valaris Trading Up 3.6%

Shares of VAL stock opened at $105.35 on Friday. Valaris has a fifty-two week low of $48.08 and a fifty-two week high of $114.12. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $86.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $85.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.87 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.55 and a current ratio of 1.55.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.41. Valaris had a net margin of 43.95% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The company had revenue of $539.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $488.52 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.61 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Valaris will post 3.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Valaris

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Valaris by 3.5% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,349,443 shares of the company’s stock worth $328,382,000 after acquiring an additional 114,730 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund boosted its position in shares of Valaris by 67.8% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 1,363,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $133,651,000 after purchasing an additional 550,987 shares in the last quarter. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Valaris by 24.2% during the 1st quarter. Goehring & Rozencwajg Associates LLC now owns 1,319,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,349,000 after purchasing an additional 257,281 shares in the last quarter. HBK Investments L P purchased a new stake in shares of Valaris during the 2nd quarter worth $114,355,000. Finally, Whitebox Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valaris during the 1st quarter worth $57,249,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

Valaris Company Profile

Valaris plc is an offshore contract drilling company that provides drilling services to oil and gas operators worldwide. The company works with customers to support offshore exploration, appraisal and development programs in shallow-water and deepwater environments.

Valaris operates a fleet that includes drillships, semisubmersible rigs and jackup rigs. Its services include mobile offshore drilling, well construction support and related rig-management and operational services. The company’s fleet is designed to serve a range of offshore projects, from conventional shelf developments to technically demanding deepwater wells.

With operations spanning major offshore energy regions, Valaris has served customers in areas including the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, Brazil, West Africa, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region.