Noble Corporation PLC (NYSE:NE) Stock Has Average Target Price of $44.71 According to Brokerages

Shares of Noble Corporation PLC (NYSE:NE) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the nine ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $44.71.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NE. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Noble from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Noble in a report on Friday, July 24th. Fearnley Fonds raised Noble from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Noble in a research report on Monday, September 7th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Noble from $55.00 to $53.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Noble

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of Noble by 44.4% during the 2nd 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 during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Noble by 43.7% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $132,000 after buying an additional 819 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Noble by 20.4% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $151,000 after buying an additional 521 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in Noble in the 2nd quarter worth $118,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC purchased a new stake in Noble in the 1st quarter worth $218,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.14% of the company’s stock.

Noble Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NE opened at $40.57 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 1.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.48 billion, a PE ratio of 43.63 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $44.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.57. Noble has a twelve month low of $26.69 and a twelve month high of $54.98.

Noble (NYSE:NE) last announced its earnings results on Monday, July 27th. The company reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.14). Noble had a net margin of 4.88% and a return on equity of 1.93%. The business had revenue of $719.69 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $697.98 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.27 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 15.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Noble will post 0.4 EPS for the current year.

Noble Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 24th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 3rd were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 3rd. Noble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 215.05%.

About Noble

Noble Corporation plc (NYSE: NE) is an offshore drilling contractor that provides drilling services to oil and gas companies worldwide. The company operates a fleet of offshore drilling rigs, including drillships, semisubmersible rigs and jackup rigs, which are used for exploration, development and production activities in offshore oil and gas fields.

Noble’s services include contract drilling, rig operations, well-construction support and related offshore services. Its fleet is designed to work in a range of water depths and operating environments, including deepwater and harsh-environment locations.