Traders Buy High Volume of NOV Put Options (NYSE:NOV)

NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders bought 2,616 put options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,353% compared to the average volume of 180 put options.

NOV Stock Performance

NOV stock opened at $14.60 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $5.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.39, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.66. NOV has a twelve month low of $13.94 and a twelve month high of $21.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 2.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $15.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.68.

NOV Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were given a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NOV news, Director David D. Harrison sold 1,784 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.10, for a total transaction of $28,722.40. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 110,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,786,311.10. This trade represents a 1.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NOV

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NOV. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in NOV in the third quarter worth about $36,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of NOV in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NOV by 1,590.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,907 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in NOV during the third quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV bought a new position in NOV in the second quarter worth approximately $78,000. 93.27% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on NOV. Citigroup cut shares of NOV from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, November 11th. ATB Capital reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $19.00 target price on shares of NOV in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays cut their price target on NOV from $16.00 to $12.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Susquehanna decreased their price objective on NOV from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of NOV from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.14.

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.