Bridgewater Associates LP Lowers Position in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Bridgewater Associates LP decreased its position in shares of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL - Free Report) by 96.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,698 shares of the company's stock after selling 105,314 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Valaris were worth $206,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lingotto Investment Management LLP boosted its position in shares of Valaris by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Lingotto Investment Management LLP now owns 3,040,610 shares of the company's stock worth $226,525,000 after purchasing an additional 36,870 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Valaris by 5.9% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,882,846 shares of the company's stock valued at $140,272,000 after purchasing an additional 105,330 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Valaris by 23.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,188,973 shares of the company's stock worth $88,573,000 after purchasing an additional 225,283 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Valaris by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 797,060 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,436,000 after buying an additional 29,031 shares during the period. Finally, Waverton Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Valaris by 20.4% in the 3rd quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 670,885 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,412,000 after buying an additional 113,509 shares in the last quarter. 96.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Valaris Price Performance

NYSE VAL traded down $1.87 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $44.62. 517,779 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,093,435. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $50.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $62.35. Valaris Limited has a fifty-two week low of $44.53 and a fifty-two week high of $84.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.09.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Gilles Luca sold 30,000 shares of Valaris stock in a transaction on Monday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.86, for a total value of $1,705,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 108,342 shares in the company, valued at $6,160,326.12. The trade was a 21.69 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.77, for a total transaction of $1,450,020.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 24,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,360,118.76. The trade was a 51.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 71,403 shares of company stock valued at $4,028,246. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on VAL shares. Citigroup decreased their target price on Valaris from $71.00 to $58.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Valaris from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Benchmark lowered shares of Valaris from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Valaris currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $73.40.

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.