NOV Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:NOV)

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

NOV Price Performance

Shares of NOV opened at $14.60 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $15.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $16.68. The company has a market capitalization of $5.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.66. NOV has a fifty-two week low of $13.94 and a fifty-two week high of $21.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 2.57.

NOV Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were given a dividend of $0.075 per share. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. NOV’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.07%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David D. Harrison sold 1,784 shares of NOV stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.10, for a total value of $28,722.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 110,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,786,311.10. The trade was a 1.58 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.85% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NOV. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of NOV by 21.4% in the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 60,544 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $1,151,000 after acquiring an additional 10,652 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in NOV by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 110,303 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $2,097,000 after purchasing an additional 2,043 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its position in NOV by 10.6% during the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 13,692 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 1,317 shares in the last quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its holdings in NOV by 4.5% in the second quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 360,355 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $6,850,000 after purchasing an additional 15,594 shares during the period. Finally, SIR Capital Management L.P. increased its position in shares of NOV by 29.9% in the second quarter. SIR Capital Management L.P. now owns 654,000 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $12,433,000 after buying an additional 150,400 shares in the last quarter. 93.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOV has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of NOV from $16.00 to $15.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup lowered NOV from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, November 11th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on NOV from $28.00 to $22.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of NOV from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of NOV in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $17.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, NOV presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.