Noble (NYSE:NE) Director Charles Sledge Sells 2,083 Shares of Stock

Noble Corporation PLC (NYSE:NE) Director Charles Sledge sold 2,083 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.63, for a total transaction of $92,964.29. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,084 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,008.92. The trade was a 49.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink.

Noble Stock Performance

Noble stock opened at $45.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.70 and a beta of 1.12. Noble Corporation PLC has a 1-year low of $17.40 and a 1-year high of $46.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.67 and a quick ratio of 1.67. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $34.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.94.

Noble (NYSE:NE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.56 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Noble Corporation PLC will post 2.99 EPS for the current year.

Noble Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.4%. Noble’s dividend payout ratio is currently 148.15%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays downgraded Noble from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $36.00 to $41.00 in a report on Wednesday. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Noble from $32.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Noble Financial cut Noble to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Fearnley Fonds downgraded shares of Noble from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Noble in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.63.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Noble

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NE. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury acquired a new position in shares of Noble in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,109,000. Sagefield Capital LP lifted its holdings in Noble by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. Sagefield Capital LP now owns 182,844 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,164,000 after purchasing an additional 52,261 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of Noble by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 911,491 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,740,000 after buying an additional 24,725 shares in the last quarter. De Lisle Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Noble in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $824,000. Finally, 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 purchasing an additional 103,477 shares in the last quarter. 68.14% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Noble News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Noble this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raising earnings estimates — Zacks notes solid upward revisions to Noble’s earnings estimates, which supports a better near‑term EPS outlook and underpins the stock’s momentum. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst target upgrades — Several firms have lifted price targets (Susquehanna to $45, BTIG to $42) and JPMorgan raised its PT to $41, signaling improved valuation expectations from some sell‑side shops and providing technical support for the stock. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend yield draws yield‑seeking buyers but raises sustainability questions — Noble declared a $0.50 quarterly dividend (annualized $2.00, ~4.5% yield) with an ex‑dividend date in early March; however the payout ratio is very high (~148%), so income appeal is tempered by concerns about long‑term sustainability. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Barclays downgraded the stock to “Equal Weight” — Barclays cut NE from Overweight to Equal Weight (even while raising its PT), a vote of caution that can reduce buy‑side conviction and weigh on sentiment. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling by senior executives — Multiple execs (including an SVP sale of 3,453 shares) disclosed material sales this week; concentrated insider reductions often spook investors and act as a near‑term headwind. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed analyst stance keeps upside limited — Several shops have raised targets but many maintain Neutral/Hold ratings (consensus is “Hold”), leaving implied upside modest vs. current levels and keeping the stock tethered to fundamentals and guidance. Read More.

About Noble

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.