Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stake in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL - Free Report) by 1.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 747,436 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,337 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 1.03% of Valaris worth $41,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in VAL. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valaris by 29.1% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 29,566 shares of the company's stock worth $2,225,000 after acquiring an additional 6,658 shares during the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its holdings in shares of Valaris by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 54,865 shares of the company's stock worth $4,129,000 after acquiring an additional 710 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Valaris by 699.3% in the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 16,881 shares of the company's stock worth $1,270,000 after acquiring an additional 14,769 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Valaris in the 1st quarter worth about $149,000. Finally, Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Valaris in the 1st quarter worth about $302,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.74% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Gilles Luca sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 108,342 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,160,326.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, COO Gilles Luca sold 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 108,342 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,160,326.12. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Matthew Lyne sold 26,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 24,388 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,360,118.76. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 71,403 shares of company stock valued at $4,028,246 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Valaris Stock Performance

Shares of Valaris stock traded up $1.19 on Monday, reaching $51.19. 1,243,588 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,056,021. Valaris Limited has a 52 week low of $48.04 and a 52 week high of $84.20. The company has a 50 day moving average of $53.23 and a 200 day moving average of $65.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.64 billion, a PE ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.61.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on VAL. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on shares of Valaris from $61.00 to $55.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Valaris from $95.00 to $71.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Pickering Energy Partners lowered shares of Valaris from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. Benchmark lowered shares of Valaris from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Valaris from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $80.00.

About Valaris

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.