Noble Corporation PLC $NE Stake Boosted by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America more than doubled its Noble stake in the second quarter, acquiring 679,981 additional shares to own 1.35 million shares valued at approximately $50.3 million, or 0.84% of the company.
• Noble reported quarterly EPS of $0.01, missing estimates of $0.15, while revenue of $719.7 million exceeded expectations but fell 15.2% year over year. The stock opened at $44.25, near the analyst consensus target of $44.71.
• Noble declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 per share, equivalent to a 4.5% annualized yield. Analysts’ overall rating remains “Hold,” with price targets and recommendations mixed.

Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in Noble Corporation PLC (NYSE:NE - Free Report) by 101.9% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,347,291 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 679,981 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned about 0.84% of Noble worth $50,254,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in Noble by 44.4% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,243 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Noble by 43.7% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,693 shares of the company's stock valued at $132,000 after acquiring an additional 819 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Noble by 20.4% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the company's stock worth $151,000 after acquiring an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in Noble during the first quarter worth $218,000. Finally, Rathbones Group PLC acquired a new position in Noble during the 1st quarter valued at $308,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.14% of the company's stock.

Noble Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE:NE opened at $44.25 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 47.58 and a beta of 0.92. Noble Corporation PLC has a 12-month low of $26.69 and a 12-month high of $54.98. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $43.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.75. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Noble (NYSE:NE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $719.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $697.98 million. Noble had a return on equity of 1.93% and a net margin of 4.88%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Noble Corporation PLC will post 0.4 earnings per share for the current year.

Noble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. Noble's dividend payout ratio is presently 215.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on NE. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Noble in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Susquehanna cut their target price on Noble from $55.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen cut Noble from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Fearnley Fonds upgraded shares of Noble from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Noble from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $44.71.

Noble Profile

Noble Corporation plc NYSE: NE is an offshore drilling contractor that provides services to energy companies involved in the exploration and development of oil and natural gas resources. The company operates a fleet of offshore drilling units, including drillships, semisubmersible rigs and jackup rigs, and performs drilling activities in deepwater, harsh-environment and other offshore settings.

Noble's services include contract drilling, rig operations and related offshore support for exploration and production programs.

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