Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 405,612 Shares of NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV - Free Report) by 30.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 911,410 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock after selling 405,612 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.23% of NOV worth $14,555,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NOV in the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in NOV in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. American National Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of NOV during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 2,735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of NOV in the third quarter worth $48,000. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at NOV

In other NOV news, Director David D. Harrison sold 1,784 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.10, for a total transaction of $28,722.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 110,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,786,311.10. This represents a 1.58 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 1.85% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

NOV Trading Up 0.3 %

NOV traded up $0.04 during trading on Friday, reaching $14.47. 2,970,075 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,811,869. The company has a current ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26. NOV Inc. has a one year low of $13.94 and a one year high of $21.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $15.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $16.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.63 billion, a PE ratio of 5.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.66.

NOV Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 20th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $0.075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $0.30 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. NOV's dividend payout ratio is 11.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NOV has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup downgraded shares of NOV from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $21.00 to $18.00 in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of NOV from $16.00 to $12.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of NOV from $28.00 to $22.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 28th. Bank of America reduced their target price on NOV from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price target on NOV from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $20.14.

NOV 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.