Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Holdings in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) by 94.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,980 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,816 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Valaris were worth $530,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Valaris during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Valaris by 41.0% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 511 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its position in Valaris by 63.3% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,929 shares of the company’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 1,135 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management boosted its position in Valaris by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 4,206 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 821 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in Valaris during the 3rd quarter worth $244,000. 96.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

VAL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Valaris from $48.00 to $44.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Valaris in a report on Friday, December 6th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $40.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Valaris from $49.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Valaris from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Valaris to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.33.

Valaris Stock Performance

Shares of Valaris stock opened at $39.68 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $2.82 billion, a PE ratio of 7.72 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $43.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a current ratio of 1.59. Valaris Limited has a 1 year low of $31.15 and a 1 year high of $84.20.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 19th. The company reported $1.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.68. The business had revenue of $584.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $578.01 million. Valaris had a net margin of 15.81% and a return on equity of 17.40%. Equities analysts forecast that Valaris Limited will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.