NOV Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:NOV)

NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors purchased 8,161 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 371% compared to the average volume of 1,731 call options.

NOV Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NOV remained flat at $16.00 during trading on Tuesday. The stock had a trading volume of 833,199 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,698,683. The company has a current ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 5.90, a PEG ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.66. NOV has a 1-year low of $14.98 and a 1-year high of $21.23. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $16.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.49.

NOV Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. NOV’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.07%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NOV

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NOV during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in NOV during the third quarter valued at $36,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in NOV in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in NOV by 1,590.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,907 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 2,735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of NOV in the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NOV has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Susquehanna cut their price objective on NOV from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of NOV from $25.00 to $24.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of NOV in a report on Friday, July 26th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $24.00 target price on shares of NOV in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Citigroup cut NOV from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Monday, November 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.64.

About NOV

NOV Inc designs, constructs, manufactures, and sells systems, components, and products for oil and gas drilling and production, and industrial and renewable energy sectors in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Energy Equipment, and Energy Products and Services. The company provides solids control and waste management equipment and services, managed pressure drilling, drilling fluids, premium drillpipe, wired pipe, drilling optimization services, tubular inspection and coating services, instrumentation, downhole tools, and drill bits.