DNOW Inc. (NYSE:DNOW) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

DNOW Inc. (NYSE:DNOW) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 3,180,000 shares, a growth of 17.3% from the February 13th total of 2,710,000 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 980,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.2 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DNOW. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in DNOW by 35.4% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 99,416 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,285,000 after purchasing an additional 26,007 shares during the period. KBC Group NV grew its stake in DNOW by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,806 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 1,190 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC grew its stake in DNOW by 443.7% in the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 37,265 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $482,000 after purchasing an additional 30,411 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc bought a new position in DNOW in the 3rd quarter valued at $187,000. Finally, Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. grew its stake in DNOW by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 2,622,426 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $33,908,000 after purchasing an additional 48,900 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.63% of the company’s stock.

DNOW Stock Up 6.0 %

NYSE DNOW traded up $0.92 on Wednesday, reaching $16.10. The company had a trading volume of 1,432,602 shares, compared to its average volume of 819,445. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.05 and a beta of 1.51. The company’s fifty day moving average is $14.99 and its 200 day moving average is $13.85. DNOW has a 52-week low of $11.42 and a 52-week high of $18.45.

DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The oil and gas company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.11 by $0.14. DNOW had a return on equity of 9.04% and a net margin of 3.41%. On average, research analysts expect that DNOW will post 0.86 EPS for the current year.

DNOW declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Friday, January 24th that allows the company to repurchase $160.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to buy up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DNOW has been the topic of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on DNOW from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded DNOW from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th.

About DNOW

DNOW Inc distributes downstream energy and industrial products for petroleum refining, chemical processing, LNG terminals, power generation utilities, and customer on-site locations in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides consumable maintenance, repair, and operating supplies; pipes, manual and automated valves, fittings, flanges, gaskets, fasteners, electrical instrumentations, artificial lift, pumping solutions, valve actuation and modular process, and measurement and control equipment; and mill supplies, tools, safety supplies, and personal protective equipment, as well as artificial lift systems, coatings, and miscellaneous expendable items.