UBS Group AG Sells 1,311,204 Shares of NOV Inc. $NOV

UBS Group AG lowered its position in NOV Inc. (NYSE:NOV) by 68.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 611,125 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after selling 1,311,204 shares during the period. UBS Group AG’s holdings in NOV were worth $9,552,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NOV. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NOV in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of NOV by 114.1% during the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 3,109 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 1,657 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of NOV by 88.4% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 5,083 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 2,385 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of NOV during the 4th quarter worth approximately $68,000. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of NOV by 33.6% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,595 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 1,658 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 93.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on NOV. Argus upgraded NOV to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on NOV from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays restated an “underweight” rating and set a $21.00 target price (up from $20.00) on shares of NOV in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on NOV from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on NOV from $17.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.36.

Insider Buying and Selling at NOV

In other NOV news, insider Joseph W. Rovig sold 151,086 shares of NOV stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.17, for a total value of $3,047,404.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 269,694 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,439,727.98. The trade was a 35.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, 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 completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 256,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,146,885.52. The trade was a 21.45% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 1.15% of the company’s stock.

NOV Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NOV opened at $20.34 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $19.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 2.47. NOV Inc. has a 52-week low of $11.65 and a 52-week high of $20.93. The company has a market cap of $7.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.77 and a beta of 0.92.

NOV (NYSE:NOV) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 27th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.17 by ($0.12). NOV had a net margin of 1.05% and a return on equity of 3.34%. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.05 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.19 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that NOV Inc. will post 0.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NOV Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.09 dividend. This represents a $0.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from NOV’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. NOV’s dividend payout ratio is presently 150.00%.

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.