Barclays Downgrades NOV (NYSE:NOV) to Underweight

Key Points

• Barclays downgraded NOV to an “underweight” rating with a $21 price target, implying only about a 4% upside from the prior close.
• NOV reported Q1 EPS of $0.05 vs. $0.17 expected, with revenue roughly in line at $2.05B but down 2.4% year-over-year and low profitability (net margin 1.05%, ROE 3.34%).
• The sell‑side consensus is a “Hold” with an average target of $19.36, while insiders sold large stakes (reductions of ~21% and ~36%) and institutional ownership stands at about 93%.

NOV (NYSE:NOV - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Barclays from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating in a research report issued on Thursday. They presently have a $21.00 target price on the oil and gas exploration company's stock. Barclays's price target suggests a potential upside of 4.08% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also commented on NOV. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on NOV from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of NOV from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of NOV from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of NOV from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Evercore raised shares of NOV to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $19.36.

NOV Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NOV stock opened at $20.18 on Thursday. NOV has a 1 year low of $11.65 and a 1 year high of $20.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.47 and a quick ratio of 1.66. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $19.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.55. The company has a market capitalization of $7.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.07 and a beta of 0.92.

NOV (NYSE:NOV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.17 by ($0.12). NOV had a net margin of 1.05% and a return on equity of 3.34%. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.05 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.19 EPS. NOV's quarterly revenue was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that NOV will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at NOV

In other NOV news, VP Craig L. Weinstock sold 70,000 shares of NOV 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 transaction, the vice president owned 256,319 shares in the company, valued at $5,146,885.52. This trade represents a 21.45% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph W. Rovig sold 151,086 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.17, for a total transaction of $3,047,404.62. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 269,694 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,439,727.98. This represents a 35.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.15% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NOV

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of NOV by 15.6% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 49,721 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $756,000 after purchasing an additional 6,711 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in NOV by 35.5% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 161,927 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $2,465,000 after purchasing an additional 42,462 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in NOV by 17.4% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 1,062,292 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $16,168,000 after buying an additional 157,385 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth acquired a new position in NOV during the first quarter valued at approximately $214,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers acquired a new position in NOV during the second quarter valued at approximately $190,000. 93.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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