Stifel Nicolaus Cuts NOV (NYSE:NOV) Price Target to $25.00

NOV (NYSE:NOV - Get Free Report) had its price target decreased by stock analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $26.00 to $25.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the oil and gas exploration company's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' target price points to a potential upside of 52.53% from the company's previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on NOV from $25.00 to $23.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on NOV from $26.00 to $22.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on NOV from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Evercore ISI raised shares of NOV to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of NOV in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $22.93.

NOV Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NOV traded up $0.21 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.39. The company had a trading volume of 3,424,630 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,704,663. NOV has a 52 week low of $15.47 and a 52 week high of $21.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.64 and a current ratio of 2.61. The business's 50 day moving average price is $16.98 and its 200-day moving average price is $18.17. The stock has a market cap of $6.45 billion, a PE ratio of 6.13, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.67.

NOV (NYSE:NOV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. NOV had a net margin of 11.88% and a return on equity of 10.97%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.39 EPS. Analysts expect that NOV will post 1.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NOV

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of NOV by 95.2% during the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 879,960 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $17,846,000 after purchasing an additional 429,104 shares during the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new position in NOV during the fourth quarter worth approximately $580,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in NOV by 96.0% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 10,743 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $210,000 after buying an additional 5,263 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of NOV by 47.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,648 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $91,000 after buying an additional 1,497 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Hawaiian Bank boosted its stake in shares of NOV by 19.2% during the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 43,312 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $845,000 after acquiring an additional 6,967 shares during the period. 93.27% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NOV Company Profile

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.