Why Valaris (VAL) Surged on a Takeover Bid

Moerus Capital Management LLC, an investment management firm, recently released its "Worldwide Fund " second-quarter 2026 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The fund navigated a highly bifurcated investment environment in the second quarter of 2026, as investor enthusiasm for artificial intelligence and technology drove a sharp rally in growth stocks while capital moved away from more traditional, value-oriented areas. The Fund's Institutional Class returned 0.14% in Q2, compared with 14.49% for the MSCI ACWI ex USA and 14.93% for the MSCI ACWI, while its first-half return stood at 5.37%, versus 13.69% and 11.25%, respectively, for the two benchmarks. The relative underperformance was primarily driven by the Fund's limited exposure to Information Technology as semiconductor and AI-related stocks surged, while its Energy holdings also gave back some earlier gains as oil prices declined; however, the Fund benefited from several energy-related investments during the first half. Looking ahead, Moerus views the extreme gap between expensive AI-focused areas and neglected parts of the market as an opportunity, maintaining its long-term deep-value approach of investing in unpopular businesses and assets at significant discounts to intrinsic value and using market volatility to identify potentially attractive investments. In addition, please check the Fund's top five holdings to know its best picks in 2026. In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, Moerus Worldwide Fund highlighted stocks like Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL). Valaris Limited is a U.S.-based provider of offshore drilling services. Moerus described Valaris as its largest individual contributor to performance in the first half of 2026. The one-month return of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) was 1.62% while its shares traded between $46.70 and $114.12 over the last 52 weeks. On September 7, 2026, Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) stock closed at approximately $86.74 per share, with a market capitalization of about $6.03 billion. Moerus Worldwide Fund stated the following regarding Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) in its Q2 2026 investor letter: "For example, consider Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL), the largest individual contributor to performance in H1. Shares of this U.S.-based provider of offshore drilling services surged in response to the February 9th announcement that the company had agreed to be acquired by Transocean in an all-stock transaction, which was priced at a roughly 32% premium to Valaris' stock price (based on the previous day's closing price of each stock). Valaris was added to the Fund in early 2025 following a slide in its share price, amid then-subdued oil prices and what we believed to be a temporary lull in offshore drilling activity caused by support infrastructure constraints (among other factors)." Pixabay/Public Domain Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) is not on our list of 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds Heading Into 2026. As per our database, 49 hedge fund portfolios held Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) at the end of the first quarter, which was 52 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the risk and potential of Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. In another article, we covered Valaris Limited (NYSE:VAL) and shared our views on the company's swing back from loss to real profit. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q1 2026 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors. READ NEXT: 33 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 15 Stocks That Will Make You Rich in 10 Years This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. More News