Has National Oilwell Varco Bottomed?
National Oilwell Varco, Incorporated (NYSE: NOV) reported earnings this morning, and if you have followed stocks in the oil patch you are quite aware that the company has been far from immune to the sharp pullback in oil prices. Excluding charges and disruptions, the oil rig maker and equipment giant posted $1.44 EPS rather than the First Call estimates of $1.30. Even after items, it reported earnings of $1.32 Basic EPS and $1.31 Diluted EPS. More important than any earnings announcement is the company’sbacklog. It said that equipment orders for the company’s RigTechnology segment as of September 30 increased to $11.8 billion,compared to $10.8 billion at June 30, 2008. New orders during thequarter were $2.4 billion. Here is where this story gets very interesting. The company said thatits backlog for capital equipment continued to increase and said it wasa result of strong demand for its drilling equipment for internationaloffshore rigs. Pete Miller, Chairman, President & CEO of Nationa
