DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

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

DNOW Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:DNOW traded down $0.14 on Wednesday, reaching $17.45. The company had a trading volume of 931,038 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,093,504. DNOW has a 52-week low of $11.42 and a 52-week high of $18.45. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $14.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.85 billion, a PE ratio of 23.91 and a beta of 1.53.

DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The oil and gas company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that DNOW will post 0.78 earnings per share for the current year.

DNOW announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Friday, January 24th that permits the company to buyback $160.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to reacquire up to 10% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Paul M. Coppinger sold 26,186 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.35, for a total value of $401,955.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 56,568 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $868,318.80. The trade was a 31.64 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 2.60% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On DNOW

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of DNOW. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of DNOW by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,307,678 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $82,063,000 after buying an additional 543,403 shares during the period. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC increased its stake in shares of DNOW by 138.7% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 579,074 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,534,000 after purchasing an additional 336,474 shares in the last quarter. Foundry Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of DNOW by 832.0% in the 3rd quarter. Foundry Partners LLC now owns 365,795 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,730,000 after purchasing an additional 326,547 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of DNOW by 145.4% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 520,695 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,774,000 after purchasing an additional 308,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of DNOW in the 4th quarter valued at about $3,903,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.63% of the company’s stock.

About DNOW

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.