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

NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) was the target of some unusual 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 daily volume of 180 put options.

NOV Stock Down 1.8%

NOV opened at $12.85 on Thursday. NOV has a fifty-two week low of $10.84 and a fifty-two week high of $21.20. The business has a 50-day moving average of $12.60 and a 200-day moving average of $13.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 2.65 and a quick ratio of 1.76. The company has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a PE ratio of 8.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.28.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 28th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.19 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.06). NOV had a return on equity of 9.11% and a net margin of 6.68%. The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.11 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that NOV will post 1.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NOV Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 2nd. NOV’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on NOV shares. Barclays decreased their target price on NOV from $13.00 to $11.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on NOV from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on NOV from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on NOV from $20.00 to $17.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their price objective on NOV from $21.00 to $19.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $17.44.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of NOV by 2.8% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 48,413 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $737,000 after acquiring an additional 1,309 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth bought a new position in shares of NOV in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Bayforest Capital Ltd raised its stake in shares of NOV by 197.1% in the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 48,041 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 31,873 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of NOV by 17.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,062,292 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $16,168,000 after acquiring an additional 157,385 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of NOV by 2,266.9% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 509,555 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $7,755,000 after acquiring an additional 488,027 shares in the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About NOV

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.