NOV Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:NOV)

NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) saw unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Investors acquired 2,616 put options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 1,353% compared to the average volume of 180 put options.

NOV Trading Down 2.1 %

NOV stock opened at $18.47 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $7.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.36, a PEG ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.74. NOV has a twelve month low of $14.05 and a twelve month high of $21.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 2.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day moving average of $18.39 and a 200-day moving average of $19.20.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 2nd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $1.10. The company had revenue of $2.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.26 billion. NOV had a return on equity of 10.79% and a net margin of 11.57%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.26 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that NOV will post 1.54 EPS for the current year.

NOV Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were issued a $0.05 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $0.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.97%.

Insider Transactions at NOV

In other news, CAO Christy Lynn Novak sold 3,500 shares of NOV stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.43, for a total transaction of $61,005.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 114,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,990,715.16. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.85% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of NOV during the first quarter worth about $39,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of NOV by 7.5% during the first quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 17,020 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $332,000 after buying an additional 1,194 shares during the period. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its position in shares of NOV by 5.2% during the first quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 12,992 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 643 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp acquired a new position in shares of NOV during the first quarter worth about $500,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of NOV during the first quarter worth about $26,000. 93.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NOV has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $24.00 price target on shares of NOV in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on NOV from $28.00 to $26.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 5th. ATB Capital set a $33.00 price target on NOV and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 22nd. Susquehanna reaffirmed a “positive” rating and issued a $26.00 price target on shares of NOV in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on NOV from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $24.36.

NOV Company Profile

NOV Inc designs, constructs, manufactures, and sells systems, components, and products for oil and gas drilling and production, and industrial and renewable energy sectors in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Energy Equipment, and Energy Products and Services. The company provides solids control and waste management equipment and services, managed pressure drilling, drilling fluids, premium drillpipe, wired pipe, drilling optimization services, tubular inspection and coating services, instrumentation, downhole tools, and drill bits.