J.P. Morgan Lowers Noble (NE) Price Target To $42

J.P. Morgan analysts J. David Anderson, Adam Aron and Samantha Hoh maintained their Neutral rating for shares of Noble Corporation NE and lowered the price target to $42 per share, down from the previous price target of $49. The analysts said that half of the Noble Corporation jackup fleet contracts are scheduled to roll over within the next 120 days. They said that the status of the rigs could influence expectations in the market for jackup rates. The J.P. Morgan analysts wrote, "we continue to rate NE Neutral with a $42 Dec 2010 price target down from $49 previously. Although Noble continues to trade as one of the cheapest names in our group on a straight valuation basis, we believe some of this discount is warranted. The company has the largest concentration of commodity jackups within our coverage, which we believe will continue to find difficulty in obtaining contracts, causing pressure on dayrates. NE currently trades at 6.1x our 2011E adjusted earnings compared to the group at 7.0x; our price target assumes the stock appreciates to 8.0x, below our price target multiple for the group at 8.9x."