At a glance
Noble Corporation plc is worth $7.51B, about 35 times its fiscal 2025 earnings. Revenue grew 7.4% to $3.29B in fiscal 2025, with 6.6% kept as profit; over 5 years it has grown 27.8% a year. It pays a 4.25% dividend yield, and returned $1.13B to shareholders in dividends and buybacks over FY2020–FY2025. The stock returned +64.8% over the past year with dividends reinvested and +17.0% a year over five years, against +11.5% and +11.7% for the S&P 500. At its worst it fell 37.8% in the 2022 bear market (S&P 500: 24.5%), and was back at its earlier high 4 months after the low.
The business in plain English
Noble Corporation plc, incorporated in England and Wales, is an offshore drilling contractor. Rather than producing oil or gas itself, it rents out drilling rigs, with the crews that run them, to oil and gas companies drilling wells under the sea. Customers include large international oil companies, independent producers and state-run oil companies. Its roots go back to 1921, and it bought Diamond Offshore Drilling in September 2024.
Most contracts pay a "dayrate," a fixed fee for each day a rig works. Pay drops or stops during breakdowns, repairs or bad weather, while Noble covers running costs such as crew wages. Contracts cover a set period or number of wells, and customers can sometimes end them early by paying a termination fee.
Noble reports one segment, contract drilling. Of its $3.29 billion of fiscal 2025 revenue, floaters (drillships and semisubmersibles rated for up to 12,000 feet of water) earned 78.2%. Jackups, which stand on legs on the seabed in up to 500 feet of water, earned 16.4%, and reimbursed costs and other items 5.4%. As of February 12, 2026, the fleet had 31 rigs: 25 floaters and 6 jackups, down from 36 at the end of 2025. At year-end, rigs worked in Africa, Far East Asia, the North Sea, Oceania, South America and the US Gulf of America.
Price history
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NE +64.8% over the year to Oct 28, 2026, total return with dividends reinvested.
How it makes money
By product or service
| Floaters | $2.57B | 78.2% |
| Jackups | $539.5M | 16.4% |
| Reimbursables and other | $178.4M | 5.4% |
Latest results
- In Q3 FY2026 (ended Sep 30, 2026), revenue was $728.8M, down 8.7% from a year earlier, and net income was $-117.0M.
- For fiscal 2025, revenue was $3.29B (+7.4% year over year; +27.8% a year from FY2020 to FY2025) with a 6.6% net margin.
Financial health check
| Revenue growth a year (FY2020–FY2025) | +27.8% good |
|---|---|
| Operating margin | 12.6% watch |
| Free cash flow margin | 13.2% good |
| Return on equity (FY2025) | 4.8% weak |
| Return on assets (FY2025) | 2.9% weak |
| Net cash (cash minus debt) | $-1.55B weak |
| Fiscal year | Revenue | Net income | Free cash flow |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2020 | $964.3M | $-3.98B | $124.3M |
| FY2022 | $1.41B | $168.9M | $106.7M |
| FY2023 | $2.59B | $481.9M | $164.8M |
| FY2024 | $3.06B | $448.4M | $80.2M |
| FY2025 | $3.29B | $216.7M | $432.2M |
Valuation snapshot
| Market value | $7.51B |
|---|---|
| P/E ratio | 34.9 |
| Dividend yield | 4.25% |
Rank among 1514 US companies
Market value at each year end
Noble Corporation’s market value went from $4.93B at the end of 2022 to $7.51B on Oct 28, 2026, up 52%; since the end of 2025 it is up 67%.
Show as a table
| Year end | Market value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 28, 2026 | $7.51B | +67.5% |
| 2025 | $4.49B | -10.9% |
| 2024 | $5.04B | -25.9% |
| 2023 | $6.79B | +37.7% |
| 2022 | $4.93B |
Price behavior
| YTD | 1 yr | 3 yr | 5 yr | 10 yr | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NE price data to Oct 28, 2026 | +72.1% | +64.8% | +6.7% | +17.0% | — |
Show as a table
| Year | Price data |
|---|---|
| 2026 (to date) | +72.1% |
| 2025 | -1.4% |
| 2024 | -31.6% |
| 2023 | +29.5% |
| 2022 | +52.0% |
| 2008 financial crisis stocks fell Oct 9, 2007 – Mar 9, 2009 | Before this security existed |
|---|---|
| 2020 COVID crash stocks fell Feb 19, 2020 – Mar 23, 2020 | Before this security existed |
| 2022 bear market stocks fell Jan 3, 2022 – Oct 12, 2022 | Gained 14.8% over that stretch · deepest drop along the way 37.8%, back to its old high 4 months after the low |
Insider activity
Form 4 filings from 2025-10-29 to 2026-10-29 (25 read): 0 open-market purchases and 22 sales ($22.9M), 6 of them under pre-arranged 10b5-1 trading plans.
| Date | Insider | Type | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 18, 2026 | Richard B. Barker EVP and CFO | sell (plan) | $4.8M |
| Mar 18, 2026 | Robert W. Eifler President & CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $3.4M |
| Mar 18, 2026 | Richard B. Barker EVP and CFO | sell (plan) | $2.2M |
| May 5, 2026 | Joey M Kawaja SVP, Operations | sell | $2.0M |
| Jun 15, 2026 | Robert W. Eifler President & CEO, Director | sell (plan) | $1.5M |
Who owns it
Large shareholders (13G filings)
| BlackRock, Inc. | 11.2% | Oct 31, 2025 |
| First Eagle Investment Management, LLC | 8.8% | Mar 31, 2026 |
| Vanguard Portfolio Management | 5.05% | Mar 31, 2026 |
ETFs with the most weight in NE
| XES SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF | 4.78% |
| PXJ Invesco Oil & Gas Services ETF | 4.59% |
| OIH VanEck Oil Services ETF | 4.56% |
| IEZ iShares U.S. Oil Equipment & Services ETF | 2.77% |
| FTIF First Trust Bloomberg Inflation Sensitive Equity ETF | 1.45% |
| NDIV Amplify Natural Resources Dividend Income ETF | 1.36% |
| NBET Neuberger Berman Energy Transition & Infrastructure ETF | 1.2% |
| TXSS Texas Capital Texas Small Cap Equity Index ETF | 0.36% |
What could go wrong
- Relies on a few customers and regions. A substantial part of Noble's business depends on a handful of customers and regions. Several drillships work off Guyana and in the US Gulf, so losing one client or a regional slowdown could hurt results.
- Oil prices drive a boom-and-bust industry. Offshore drilling is cyclical and price-competitive. Customers' budgets follow oil and gas prices. The Brent oil benchmark went from $9.12 in 2020 to $133.18 in 2022. Weak demand means idle rigs and lower dayrates.
- Contract backlog may never become revenue. Backlog, work already signed but not yet done, may never be fully earned. Customers can end contracts early by paying a set termination fee and may push to renegotiate prices when markets weaken.
- Downtime can stop the daily pay. Noble earns little or nothing while a rig is broken, under repair or stopped by weather, but still pays crews and upkeep. Upgrades and repairs can also run late and over budget.
- Offshore accidents and gaps in insurance. Offshore drilling carries risks such as blowouts, pollution and storm damage. Insurance and customers' promises to cover certain losses may not protect against everything, and customers are pushing Noble to accept more risk.
- The dividend could be cut or suspended. Noble's annual report warns dividends and buybacks may shrink or stop. Fiscal 2025 dividends exceeded net income, and Noble posted a net loss in the quarter ended September 30, 2026.
Recent events
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- New debt or financial obligation
- Other company announcement
- Major agreement signed; New debt or financial obligation; Other company announcement
- Executive or board change
- Shareholder vote results
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
- Executive or board change
- Quarterly results released; Investor presentation or announcement
For income and retirement investors
Noble pays a dividend, but the record is short: none in fiscal 2022, then $0.70 per share in 2023, $1.80 in 2024 and $2.00 in 2025. The yield was 4.25% as of October 28, 2026. Fiscal 2025 dividends equaled 147.8% of earnings, more than Noble earned, and 74.1% of free cash flow (cash left after running the business and investing in rigs). Buybacks fell from $300 million in 2024 to $20 million in 2025, and the share count rose 22% from October 2022 to October 2026, a span that included the part-stock Diamond Offshore purchase.
From the market's January 2022 peak to its October 2022 low, the shares rose 14.8%, but they fell 37.8% between June and July 2022 before recovering by November. The worst drop over the three years to October 28, 2026 was 61.7%. Noble's price record is too short to show the 2008 or 2020 crashes. Single stocks carry more risk than diversified funds.
Questions investors ask
How does Noble Corp make money?
Noble makes money by renting offshore drilling rigs, with crews, to oil and gas companies. It is usually paid a fixed "dayrate" for each day a rig works under contract. Of its $3.29 billion of revenue in fiscal 2025, floaters (deepwater drillships and semisubmersibles) brought in 78.2%, jackups (rigs that stand on the seabed in shallower water) 16.4%, and reimbursed costs and other items 5.4%. Net income was $216.7 million, down 51.7% from 2024.
Does Noble Corp pay a dividend?
Yes. Noble paid $2.00 per share for fiscal 2025, up from $1.80 in 2024 and $0.70 in 2023, after paying nothing in 2022. The yield was 4.25% as of October 28, 2026. Earnings did not cover it: fiscal 2025 dividends equaled 147.8% of earnings, though only 74.1% of free cash flow (cash left after costs and rig investment). Noble's annual report warns that it may decrease or suspend its dividend and buybacks.
How has Noble Corp stock performed?
Noble's share price has swung widely. As of October 28, 2026, it was up 72.1% for the year to date and 64.8% over one year. Over five years it gained 119% in total, about 17% a year. Calendar-year price returns ranged from gains of 52% in 2022 and 29.5% in 2023 to losses of 31.6% in 2024 and 1.4% in 2025. Its worst drop over the three years to that date was 61.7%.
What are the biggest risks of owning Noble stock?
The biggest risks come from the oil and gas cycle. Offshore drilling is cyclical and price-competitive, and customers' drilling budgets follow oil and gas prices. Noble also relies on several key customers and regions, signed contracts can be canceled or renegotiated, and rigs earn little or nothing during breakdowns or bad weather. Noble reported a net loss of $117 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2026, and carried $1.89 billion of debt against $337 million of cash and investments at that date.
Which ETFs hold Noble Corp stock?
Seventy ETFs held Noble shares, and its largest weights were in oil and gas services funds: the SPDR S&P Oil & Gas Equipment & Services ETF (XES) at 4.78%, the Invesco Oil & Gas Services ETF (PXJ) at 4.59% and the VanEck Oil Services ETF (OIH) at 4.56%. These funds spread money across many oilfield service companies, which may suit investors who want exposure to the industry without relying on one stock.