Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) Upgraded by Zacks Research to Hold Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on VTOL. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Bristow Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Bristow Group in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $60.00.

Bristow Group Trading Up 2.8%

Shares of VTOL opened at $43.94 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 2.15 and a quick ratio of 1.79. Bristow Group has a 1 year low of $32.76 and a 1 year high of $50.38. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $43.60.

Bristow Group (NYSE:VTOL) last posted its 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 return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 7.51%.The firm had revenue of $388.71 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $383.68 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Bristow Group will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Bristow Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. Bristow Group’s dividend payout ratio is 13.02%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bristow Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Bristow Group by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,056,599 shares of the company’s stock valued at $75,313,000 after buying an additional 71,638 shares during the last quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP boosted its stake in shares of Bristow Group by 15.7% in the third quarter. Invenomic Capital Management LP now owns 132,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,784,000 after buying an additional 18,003 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Bristow Group in the fourth quarter worth about $616,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH grew its holdings in Bristow Group by 33.3% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 130,735 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,795,000 after acquiring an additional 32,623 shares during the period. Finally, Encompass Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Bristow Group during the fourth quarter worth about $25,613,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.29% of the company’s stock.

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.