Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen cut shares of Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Saturday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Bristow Group to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of Bristow Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $60.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Bristow Group in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, JonesTrading assumed coverage on Bristow Group in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.00.

Bristow Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VTOL opened at $47.64 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.03 and a beta of 1.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $42.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.26. Bristow Group has a fifty-two week low of $25.11 and a fifty-two week high of $49.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 1.91 and a quick ratio of 1.53.

Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $377.26 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $380.33 million. Bristow Group had a return on equity of 13.12% and a net margin of 8.66%.

Bristow Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Bristow Group news, COO Stuart Stavley sold 24,908 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.02, for a total value of $1,171,174.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 85,790 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,033,845.80. This trade represents a 22.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 13.40% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bristow Group

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of VTOL. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Bristow Group in the 1st quarter valued at $1,119,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Bristow Group by 4.4% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 14,592 shares of the company’s stock valued at $461,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC increased its stake in Bristow Group by 178.7% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 53,526 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,690,000 after acquiring an additional 34,317 shares during the period. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Bristow Group in the first quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in Bristow Group by 208.4% during the second quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,351 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.29% of the company’s stock.

Bristow Group Company Profile

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.