Noble (NYSE:NE) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s Why
by Mitch Edgeman · The Markets DailyNoble Corporation PLC (NYSE:NE – Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $47.44 and last traded at $46.2160, with a volume of 254878 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $45.52.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
NE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Noble from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. SEB Equity Research set a $33.00 price target on shares of Noble in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Noble from $33.00 to $41.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Noble from $32.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Fearnley Fonds cut Noble from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $38.63.
Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on Noble
Noble Stock Performance
The company has a fifty day moving average of $34.13 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.67 and a current ratio of 1.67.
Noble (NYSE:NE – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.15 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $764.41 million for the quarter. Noble had a return on equity of 2.34% and a net margin of 6.60%.Noble’s revenue for the quarter was down 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.56 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Noble Corporation PLC will post 2.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Noble Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. Noble’s dividend payout ratio is presently 148.15%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, CFO Richard B. Barker sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.96, for a total value of $859,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 314,781 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,522,991.76. This trade represents a 5.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Jennie Howard sold 6,094 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.00, for a total transaction of $255,948.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 18,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $762,804. This represents a 25.12% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 78,805 shares of company stock valued at $3,411,254 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NE. Hosking Partners LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Noble by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Hosking Partners LLP now owns 1,140,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,203,000 after buying an additional 103,477 shares during the last quarter. Hara Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Noble during the 4th quarter valued at $4,902,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its position in Noble by 424.2% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 440,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,435,000 after purchasing an additional 356,333 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Noble by 77.8% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,440 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in Noble by 1.1% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 886,766 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,078,000 after purchasing an additional 9,442 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.14% of the company’s stock.
Noble Company Profile
Noble Corp. Plc engages in the provision offshore drilling services for oil and gas industry. It focuses on a balanced fleet of floating and jackup rigs and the deployment of drilling rigs in oil and gas basins around the world. The company was founded by Lloyd Noble and Art Olson in 1921 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.