Entropy Technologies LP Invests $438,000 in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP has acquired a new stake in Valaris Limited, purchasing 11,163 shares valued at approximately $438,000 in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors, including TLS Advisors LLC and Townsquare Capital LLC, have significantly increased their holdings in Valaris during the same period.
• Analysts have set a consensus rating of "Hold" for Valaris stock, with an average price target of $46.20, reflecting mixed opinions on its future performance.

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 11,163 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $438,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VAL. LPL Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 101.4% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 21,322 shares of the company's stock worth $943,000 after purchasing an additional 10,737 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 63.8% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,573 shares of the company's stock worth $822,000 after purchasing an additional 7,234 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 19.3% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 15,139 shares of the company's stock worth $670,000 after purchasing an additional 2,444 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Valaris during the fourth quarter worth about $222,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 68.9% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 584,348 shares of the company's stock worth $25,852,000 after purchasing an additional 238,399 shares during the last quarter. 96.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Valaris Trading Down 3.0%

VAL traded down $1.40 during trading on Friday, hitting $45.23. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,264,787 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,352,408. Valaris Limited has a twelve month low of $27.15 and a twelve month high of $65.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $46.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 1.17.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.45. Valaris had a return on equity of 12.36% and a net margin of 11.18%. The firm had revenue of $615.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $582.70 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.03 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Valaris Limited will post 3.96 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on VAL shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Valaris to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on Valaris from $55.00 to $50.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $50.00 target price (up from $47.00) on shares of Valaris in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Barclays upped their target price on Valaris from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds cut Valaris from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $46.20.

Valaris 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.