Empyrean Capital Partners LP Acquires New Position in Valaris Limited $VAL

Key Points

• Empyrean Capital Partners LP acquired 140,000 shares of Valaris Limited in the first quarter, totaling approximately $5.5 million, increasing its stake to about 0.20% of the company.
• Valaris reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations by $0.45, along with revenue of $615.20 million.
• The stock has seen positive activity in ratings, with BTIG Research maintaining a "buy" rating and multiple analysts increasing their price targets, resulting in an average target price of $46.20.

Empyrean Capital Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 140,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,496,000. Empyrean Capital Partners LP owned approximately 0.20% of Valaris as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Valaris by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 684 shares of the company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Valaris in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. acquired a new stake in Valaris in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $44,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 1,027.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,353 shares of the company's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 1,233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 17.2% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 1,920 shares of the company's stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 282 shares in the last quarter. 96.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valaris Trading Up 1.7%

Valaris stock traded up $0.85 during trading on Friday, reaching $51.11. The company had a trading volume of 1,494,819 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,046,793. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $47.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.15. Valaris Limited has a 12-month low of $27.15 and a 12-month high of $57.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.81 and a current ratio of 1.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31 and a beta of 1.17.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.45. The company had revenue of $615.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $582.70 million. Valaris had a net margin of 11.18% and a return on equity of 12.36%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Valaris Limited will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on VAL. Clarkson Capital downgraded Valaris from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $54.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Valaris from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. SEB Equity Research set a $45.50 price objective on Valaris in a research report on Monday, September 1st. BTIG Research reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Valaris in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $50.00 target price (up previously from $47.00) on shares of Valaris in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $47.21.

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.