ENSCO PLC (NYSE:ESV) Stake Boosted by Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in ENSCO PLC (NYSE:ESV) by 2.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 235,133 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,027 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC’s holdings in ENSCO PLC were worth $1,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in ENSCO PLC by 1.6% in the first quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 11,635 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its position in ENSCO PLC by 4.8% in the first quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,135 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $118,000 after buying an additional 601 shares during the last quarter. First Manhattan Co. raised its position in ENSCO PLC by 72.6% in the first quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 14,260 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $121,000 after buying an additional 6,000 shares during the last quarter. Tyers Asset Management LLC raised its position in ENSCO PLC by 2.7% in the first quarter. Tyers Asset Management LLC now owns 13,748 shares of the offshore drilling services provider’s stock worth $123,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HRT Financial LLC purchased a new position in ENSCO PLC during the first quarter worth $126,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.52% of the company’s stock.

ENSCO PLC (NYSE ESV) opened at 4.83 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $5.31 and its 200 day moving average is $7.90. ENSCO PLC has a 52-week low of $4.71 and a 52-week high of $12.04. The company has a market cap of $1.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.19 and a beta of 1.64.

ENSCO PLC (NYSE:ESV) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The offshore drilling services provider reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.02. ENSCO PLC had a net margin of 2.68% and a return on equity of 0.77%. The company had revenue of $457.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $453.48 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.04 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 49.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that ENSCO PLC will post ($0.37) EPS for the current fiscal year.

ESV has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Clarkson Capital upgraded shares of ENSCO PLC from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $10.00 price target for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 30th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $4.75 price target on shares of ENSCO PLC in a research report on Tuesday, July 11th. Jefferies Group LLC set a $9.00 price target on shares of ENSCO PLC and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 1st. ValuEngine upgraded shares of ENSCO PLC from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 25th. Finally, Seaport Global Securities upgraded shares of ENSCO PLC from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $6.50 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. The stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $9.64.

ENSCO PLC Company Profile

Ensco plc is an offshore contract drilling company. The Company provides offshore contract drilling services to the international oil and gas industry. Its segments include Floaters, Jackups and Other. The Floaters segment includes its drillships and semisubmersible rigs, and provides contract drilling.

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