Oil-Gear Maker NOV Cuts Earnings Guidance as Iran War Hikes Costs and Snarls Deliveries

NOV Inc., one of the biggest US makers of oilfield gear, slashed its earnings guidance for the first quarter as the war in the Middle East raises costs and snarls equipment deliveries.

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Safety and logistical problems from the conflict dented revenue by about $54 million and adjusted earnings by around $32 million, Chief Executive Officer Jose Bayardo said in a statement Wednesday. The company now expects to report adjusted earnings of $177 million for the first quarter, down from its previous forecast of about $200 million to $225 million.

“These challenges disproportionately affected quarter-end deliveries of capital equipment and products, including spare parts, in the region, while our more service-oriented offerings were less affected,” Bayardo said. Higher shipping and freight costs amplified the impact on profits, he added.

NOV is the latest oilfield services firm after SLB to publicly warn that the ongoing conflict has pushed earnings below earlier guidance. The revised outlooks underscore the sector’s growing exposure to geopolitical disruptions that have curtailed energy supply and left the Strait of Hormuz, through which about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flowed before the war, effectively shut.

NOV supplies equipment, technology and services to oil and gas operators across the Middle East and had been expanding in the region, opening a local headquarters in Saudi Arabia in 2024. Shares of the Houston-based company fell 1% to $18.915 as of 9:30 a.m. in New York.