DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) Raised to Buy at StockNews.com

DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) was upgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Thursday.

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their target price on DNOW from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th.

DNOW Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of DNOW stock opened at $15.98 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $14.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $13.63. The firm has a market cap of $1.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.89 and a beta of 1.53. DNOW has a 12 month low of $11.42 and a 12 month high of $18.45.

DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The oil and gas company reported $0.25 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that DNOW will post 0.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

DNOW declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Friday, January 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $160.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to purchase up to 10% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On DNOW

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of DNOW by 15.5% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 277,298 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,951,000 after purchasing an additional 37,178 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of DNOW by 72.4% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,560 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $85,000 after purchasing an additional 2,754 shares in the last quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of DNOW by 1.9% during 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 in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in DNOW by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,731,485 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $22,388,000 after acquiring an additional 54,660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royce & Associates LP lifted its stake in DNOW by 10.2% in the 3rd quarter. Royce & Associates LP now owns 612,638 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,921,000 after acquiring an additional 56,787 shares in the last quarter. 97.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

DNOW Company Profile

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.