NOV (NYSE:NOV) Price Target Raised to $23.00

NOV (NYSE:NOV) had its price objective increased by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $21.00 to $23.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the oil and gas exploration company’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ target price suggests a potential upside of 22.35% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on NOV. Barclays raised shares of NOV from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $15.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on NOV from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut NOV from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and set a $21.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of NOV in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of NOV from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.07.

NOV Price Performance

NOV opened at $18.80 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $6.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 49.88 and a beta of 0.94. NOV has a 12 month low of $11.44 and a 12 month high of $20.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.67, a current ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.00.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.23). NOV had a net margin of 1.66% and a return on equity of 3.57%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that NOV will post 1.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at NOV

In related news, insider Joseph W. Rovig sold 151,086 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.17, for a total transaction of $3,047,404.62. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 269,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,439,727.98. The trade was a 35.91% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Craig L. Weinstock sold 70,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.08, for a total value of $1,405,600.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 256,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,146,885.52. This represents a 21.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 2.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of NOV. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NOV during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NOV by 659.3% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,278 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 1,978 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its position in shares of NOV by 50.1% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 2,337 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 780 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in shares of NOV by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,578 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 709 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in NOV by 114.1% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,109 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 1,657 shares during the period. 93.27% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.