Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Stake in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) by 4.6% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,429 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,634 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.05% of Valaris worth $1,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in Valaris by 5.2% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 586,228 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,674,000 after buying an additional 29,128 shares in the last quarter. nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Valaris during the 2nd quarter worth $298,000. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Valaris by 124.2% in the second quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 43,057 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,208,000 after buying an additional 23,855 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in Valaris by 5.2% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 202,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,110,000 after acquiring an additional 10,062 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in Valaris by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 557,376 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,505,000 after buying an additional 40,951 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.74% of the company’s stock.

Valaris Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of VAL opened at $41.14 on Friday. Valaris Limited has a 1-year low of $39.90 and a 1-year high of $84.20. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $46.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $58.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.77, for a total value of $1,450,020.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 24,388 shares in the company, valued at $1,360,118.76. This represents a 51.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $49.00 target price (down from $59.00) on shares of Valaris in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Benchmark cut shares of Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Citigroup lowered Valaris from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $58.00 to $47.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Valaris in a report on Friday, December 6th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $64.33.

Valaris Company Profile

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.