NOV Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (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 Trading Down 0.8%

NOV stock opened at $15.61 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $15.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.78. NOV has a 52 week low of $10.84 and a 52 week high of $16.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.71 and a current ratio of 2.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.61, a P/E/G ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.97.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 28th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.13). NOV had a net margin of 4.36% and a return on equity of 5.89%. The business’s revenue was down .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.33 EPS. Research analysts forecast that NOV will post 1.4 EPS for the current year.

NOV Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NOV. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of NOV in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of NOV from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. Citigroup upped their price target on NOV from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on NOV from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded NOV from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, NOV currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $15.83.

Insider Transactions at NOV

In other NOV news, Director Christian S. Kendall purchased 70,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $14.46 per share, for a total transaction of $1,012,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 85,949 shares in the company, valued at $1,242,822.54. The trade was a 438.90% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 2.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of NOV

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in NOV by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 111,185 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $1,473,000 after buying an additional 678 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio grew its holdings in shares of NOV by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 116,720 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $1,547,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its stake in shares of NOV by 2.6% in the third quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 29,023 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 743 shares during the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of NOV by 7.6% during the third quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 11,759 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $156,000 after acquiring an additional 827 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC boosted its position in NOV by 8.2% during the third quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 11,282 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $149,000 after purchasing an additional 854 shares during the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.