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

NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors acquired 2,616 put options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,353% compared to the average daily volume of 180 put options.

NOV Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NOV stock opened at $15.03 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.66. NOV has a fifty-two week low of $13.78 and a fifty-two week high of $21.20. The company has a quick ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 2.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.06. NOV had a net margin of 7.16% and a return on equity of 9.88%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that NOV will post 1.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NOV Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.00%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on NOV. Barclays lifted their target price on NOV from $12.00 to $13.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on NOV from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Atb Cap Markets cut NOV from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of NOV from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, ATB Capital reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $19.00 price objective on shares of NOV in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NOV

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of NOV by 88.7% in the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 2,200 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of NOV by 282.9% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,240 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 1,655 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of NOV by 222.3% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 2,337 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 1,612 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new position in NOV in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in NOV by 41.3% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,587 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 756 shares during the period. 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.