Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) Given Average Rating of “Reduce” by Analysts

Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Reduce” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $56.67.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on VAL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Valaris in a research report on Friday, December 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $40.00 price target for the company. Benchmark downgraded shares of Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup lowered shares of Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $58.00 to $47.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Evercore ISI lowered Valaris from an “outperform” rating to an “in-line” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $87.00 to $59.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st.

Valaris Stock Performance

NYSE:VAL opened at $49.01 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a 50-day moving average of $45.30 and a 200-day moving average of $54.87. Valaris has a twelve month low of $39.90 and a twelve month high of $84.20. The firm has a market cap of $3.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.36 by ($0.48). The company had revenue of $643.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $588.00 million. Valaris had a net margin of 47.52% and a return on equity of 13.67%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.17 EPS. Analysts forecast that Valaris will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Valaris in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Valaris by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,000 after acquiring an additional 511 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valaris during the 2nd quarter worth $204,000. Scientech Research LLC bought a new position in shares of Valaris during the 2nd quarter valued at $211,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Valaris by 63.3% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,929 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

About Valaris

Valaris Limited, together with its subsidiaries, provides offshore contract drilling services Gulf of Mexico, South America, North Sea, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates through four segments: Floaters, Jackups, ARO, and Other. It owns an offshore drilling rig fleet, which include drillships, dynamically positioned semisubmersible rigs, moored semisubmersible rig, and jackup rigs.