NOV (NYSE:NOV) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of NOV (NYSE:NOV) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently issued reports on NOV. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $19.00 price objective on NOV in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on NOV from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $21.00 price target on NOV in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of NOV in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on NOV from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NOV presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $20.92.

NOV Trading Down 4.0%

Shares of NOV opened at $19.02 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.15 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.47. NOV has a fifty-two week low of $11.77 and a fifty-two week high of $21.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $19.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $19.40.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $2.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.08 billion. NOV had a net margin of 1.10% and a return on equity of 3.42%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.29 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that NOV will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current year.

NOV Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 12th were issued a $0.09 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 12th. This represents a yield of 170.0%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio is 150.00%.

Institutional Trading of NOV

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NOV. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in NOV during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of NOV by 39.9% in the first quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,937 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 552 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of NOV by 36.8% during the 1st quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 2,030 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 546 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in NOV during the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in 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 valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 1,978 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

NOV News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting NOV this week:

• Positive Sentiment: NOV reported second-quarter adjusted earnings of $0.31 per share and revenue of $2.13 billion, exceeding Wall Street estimates of approximately $0.16–$0.17 and $2.08 billion, respectively. NOV Q2 earnings and revenues beat estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Net income rose to $112 million, while adjusted EBITDA increased 12% year over year to $283 million. Operating profit and Energy Equipment margins also improved, reflecting better execution, sales mix and offshore project activity. NOV reports second-quarter 2026 earnings
• Positive Sentiment: Management cited improving industry fundamentals, stronger short-cycle activity, offshore opportunities and growing demand for automation and digital products. NOV also returned $127 million to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases. NOV Q2 2026 earnings call transcript
• Neutral Sentiment: Third-quarter guidance calls for revenue to be flat to up 2% year over year and adjusted EBITDA of $240 million to $270 million, suggesting continued improvement but potentially lower profitability than the second quarter. NOV Q2 key metrics compared with estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue declined 2% year over year, and Energy Products and Services revenue fell 5%. Bookings of $474 million produced a 74% book-to-bill ratio, while capital-equipment backlog declined $220 million from the prior year, raising concerns about future growth.
• Negative Sentiment: Second-quarter adjusted EBITDA benefited by approximately $40 million from tariff refunds, making the underlying improvement less substantial. Free cash flow was negative $64 million, adding to investor caution.

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.