Noble (NYSE:NE) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.05 EPS

Key Points

• Earnings beat: Noble reported $0.26 EPS versus a $0.21 consensus (+$0.05) and revenue of $785.69M vs. $730.80M expected, although revenue was down 10.1% year-over-year.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50 (annualized $2.00) for a 4.0% dividend yield, but the payout ratio is an elevated 148.15%, raising sustainability concerns.
• Despite the beat, Wall Street holds a consensus "Reduce" rating with a $41.50 price target below the current share price, and insiders sold sizable blocks of stock (CFO 150,000 shares; CEO 100,000 shares), signaling caution.

Noble (NYSE:NE - Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Monday. The company reported $0.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.21 by $0.05, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $785.69 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $730.80 million. Noble had a return on equity of 2.34% and a net margin of 6.60%.The company's revenue was down 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.26 earnings per share.

Noble Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NE opened at $49.59 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.73 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. Noble has a 12 month low of $20.19 and a 12 month high of $51.61. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $47.28 and its 200-day simple moving average is $36.97.

Noble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Noble's payout ratio is presently 148.15%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on NE. Zacks Research cut shares of Noble from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Noble in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Evercore set a $45.00 price objective on Noble in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Noble from $45.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Noble from $33.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Noble currently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $41.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Noble

In other Noble news, CFO Richard B. Barker sold 150,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.63, for a total transaction of $6,994,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 164,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,683,738.03. This trade represents a 47.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Robert W. Eifler sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.62, for a total transaction of $4,662,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,243,828 shares in the company, valued at $57,987,261.36. This represents a 7.44% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 328,805 shares of company stock valued at $15,067,754. Insiders own 1.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Noble by 819.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,601 shares of the company's stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 2,318 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Noble in the first quarter valued at $142,000. Captrust Financial Advisors acquired a new position in shares of Noble during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $359,000. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury purchased a new stake in shares of Noble during the fourth quarter worth $1,109,000. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Noble during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $3,935,000. 68.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Noble

Noble NYSE: NE is an offshore drilling company that provides drilling services to the global oil and gas industry. The firm operates a fleet of mobile offshore drilling units and delivers contract drilling solutions for exploration and production activities. Its core business centers on executing drilling programs for upstream energy companies across a range of water depths and operating environments.

Products and services include the operation and management of offshore drilling rigs — such as drillships, semisubmersibles and jackups — along with associated technical, engineering and project management services.