NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the seventeen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $19.2857.

NOV has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on NOV from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on NOV from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on NOV from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their target price on NOV from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on NOV from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 9th.

Insider Activity

In other NOV news, insider Joseph W. Rovig sold 151,086 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.17, for a total transaction of $3,047,404.62. Following the transaction, the insider owned 269,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,439,727.98. This trade represents a 35.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Craig L. Weinstock sold 70,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.08, for a total value of $1,405,600.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 256,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,146,885.52. The trade was a 21.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NOV

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its stake in shares of NOV by 1,743.9% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,059,400 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $79,080,000 after buying an additional 4,785,015 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of NOV by 401.9% during the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,165,518 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $39,347,000 after buying an additional 2,534,815 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of NOV by 43.6% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 7,596,504 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $100,654,000 after buying an additional 2,304,975 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of NOV by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 2,721,997 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $42,545,000 after buying an additional 1,178,838 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in shares of NOV during the third quarter worth about $14,114,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

NOV Trading Up 0.2%

NOV opened at $19.91 on Wednesday. NOV has a one year low of $11.65 and a one year high of $20.93. The company has a market cap of $7.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.96 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.47. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $19.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.44.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last posted its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.05 billion. NOV had a return on equity of 3.34% and a net margin of 1.05%.NOV’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.19 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that NOV will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NOV Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from NOV’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.8%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio is 150.00%.

Trending Headlines about NOV

Here are the key news stories impacting NOV this week:

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen upgraded NOV from “hold” to “strong-buy,” which is a notable bullish signal from a sell-side shop and may support the stock. TD Cowen Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Evercore raised NOV to “hold” (from a lower rating), a milder positive endorsement that can attract cautious buyers. Evercore Upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: Revenue slightly beat expectations for Q1, which tempers the earnings disappointment, but sales were down year-over-year — a mixed read on near-term demand. Q1 Revenue Beat (Zacks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Summary coverage of NOV’s Q1 earnings call provides additional color on segment performance and management commentary; useful for gauging guidance changes but not clearly market-moving on its own. Earnings Call Summary (Yahoo)
• Negative Sentiment: NOV missed Q1 EPS estimates (reported $0.05 vs. ~$0.17 expected) and management cited Middle East disruptions that hit operations — this is the core reason for today’s weakness. Q1 EPS Miss (Zacks)
• Negative Sentiment: There was unusually large put-option activity (about 2,616 puts bought, a ~1,353% jump vs. normal), indicating short-term bearish positioning by traders. This can amplify downward price pressure.
• Negative Sentiment: Macro note — a Reuters piece highlights a U.S. natural-gas glut even as global supplies tighten; oversupply in places like West Texas can depress U.S. drilling and service demand, a headwind for oilfield-services names including NOV. U.S. Gas Glut (Reuters)

About NOV

National Oilwell Varco (NYSE: NOV) is a leading provider of equipment and technology to the oil and gas industry. The company designs, manufactures and services an extensive portfolio of products used in drilling, completion and production operations. Its offerings include drilling rigs and related components, wellbore technologies such as tubulars and completion tools, surface equipment including mud pumps and blowout preventers, and aftermarket parts and services that support ongoing field operations.

NOV’s business is organized to serve upstream energy companies around the world.