Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) Short Interest Update

Key Points

• Valaris Limited experienced a significant increase in short interest of 231.4% in July, with a total of 8,980,000 shares sold short, indicating a potential shift in market sentiment.
• Research analysts have given a consensus rating of "Hold" for Valaris, with an average target price of $53.50, although ratings vary among analysts with two selling, six holding, and one buying.
• The company reported earnings of $1.61 EPS, exceeding expectations and reflecting a net margin of 11.18% and revenue growth of 0.8% year-over-year.

Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totaling 8,980,000 shares, agrowthof231.4% from the June 30th total of 2,710,000 shares. Currently,14.3% of the company's stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,600,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.6 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,600,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 5.6 days. Currently,14.3% of the company's stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on VAL shares. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $50.00 price objective (up previously from $47.00) on shares of Valaris in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Valaris to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Fearnley Fonds downgraded shares of Valaris from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Valaris from $37.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on Valaris from $46.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Valaris has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $53.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Valaris

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blume Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Valaris by 56.5% in the second quarter. Blume Capital Management Inc. now owns 665 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its position in Valaris by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 684 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Valaris in the first quarter worth $28,000. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Valaris by 518.3% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 742 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 622 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Valaris by 77.9% in the second quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 822 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 360 shares during the period. 96.74% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valaris Stock Performance

Shares of VAL stock opened at $45.21 on Monday. Valaris has a 1 year low of $27.15 and a 1 year high of $72.00. The business has a fifty day moving average of $45.05 and a 200 day moving average of $40.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.81 and a quick ratio of 1.81. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.77 and a beta of 1.17.

Valaris (NYSE:VAL - Get Free Report) last posted its 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. The firm had revenue of $615.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $582.70 million. Valaris had a net margin of 11.18% and a return on equity of 12.36%. The business's revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.03 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Valaris will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

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.

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