Nabors Industries (NYSE:NBR) Shares Gap Up – Here’s Why

Nabors Industries Ltd. (NYSE:NBR) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday. The stock had previously closed at $81.32, but opened at $86.21. Nabors Industries shares last traded at $90.2450, with a volume of 159,108 shares traded.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on NBR. Morgan Stanley set a $110.00 target price on shares of Nabors Industries in a report on Thursday, August 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Nabors Industries from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Zacks Research downgraded Nabors Industries from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $91.00 price objective (up from $85.00) on shares of Nabors Industries in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Nabors Industries from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.43.

Nabors Industries Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.77, a quick ratio of 1.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.04. The company has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.51 and a beta of 1.11. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $84.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.01.

Nabors Industries (NYSE:NBR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The oil and gas company reported ($1.24) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($1.10). Nabors Industries had a negative net margin of 1.17% and a negative return on equity of 3.98%. The company had revenue of $872.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $859.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $16.85 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Nabors Industries Ltd. will post -3.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Nabors Industries

In other news, Director David Tudor sold 3,200 shares of Nabors Industries stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.30, for a total value of $295,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 5,264 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $485,867.20. The trade was a 37.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 5.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Nabors Industries

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NBR. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Nabors Industries by 29.3% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 622 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Nabors Industries by 16.9% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,134 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $95,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Nabors Industries by 0.7% in the first quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 24,937 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,146,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Nabors Industries by 106.6% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 436 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HB Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Nabors Industries by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,390 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $537,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 81.92% of the company’s stock.

Nabors Industries Company Profile

Nabors Industries Ltd. is a global provider of drilling and well-construction services to the oil and gas industry. The company operates land-based drilling rigs and offshore drilling units, serving exploration and production companies developing conventional and unconventional oil and natural gas resources.

Its services and products include contract drilling, directional drilling, measurement-while-drilling and logging-while-drilling technologies, wellbore placement, and drilling-related equipment.