Noble (NYSE:NE) Trading Up 4.4% - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Noble shares rose 4.4% to about $45.81, though trading volume was substantially below average.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the stock carries an average “Hold” rating and a $44.71 price target, with recent target-price cuts offset by one strong-buy upgrade.
• Noble’s latest quarter missed earnings expectations, with EPS of $0.01 versus $0.15 expected and revenue down 15.2% year over year. The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.50, yielding about 4.3%, but its 215% payout ratio raises sustainability concerns.

Noble Corporation PLC (NYSE:NE - Get Free Report) shares were up 4.4% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $45.67 and last traded at $45.8130. 192,869 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 1,702,492 shares. The stock had previously closed at $43.88.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NE. Susquehanna dropped their target price on Noble from $55.00 to $40.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Noble from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Fearnley Fonds raised shares of Noble from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Noble from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Noble in a report on Friday, July 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $44.71.

Noble Stock Up 6.2%

The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company has a market capitalization of $7.44 billion, a PE ratio of 50.11 and a beta of 0.92. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $43.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $45.77.

Noble (NYSE:NE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $719.69 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $697.98 million. Noble had a net margin of 4.88% and a return on equity of 1.93%. The firm's revenue was down 15.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.27 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Noble Corporation PLC will post 0.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Noble Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 24th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 3rd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 3rd. Noble's dividend payout ratio is presently 215.05%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Noble

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Noble by 0.7% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 35,142 shares of the company's stock worth $1,311,000 after acquiring an additional 237 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in Noble by 44.4% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,243 shares of the company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 382 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Noble by 20.4% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the company's stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Noble by 43.7% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Noble by 2.3% during the second quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 65,934 shares of the company's stock worth $2,459,000 after buying an additional 1,486 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.14% of the company's stock.

About Noble

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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