Sifting through countless of stocks in the Energy Equipment & Services industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in NOV Inc., Cactus or Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc.

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 in two segments, Energy Equipment, and Energy Products and Services. The Energy Products and Services segment offers drill bits and borehole enlargement products; independent drilling and intervention downhole tools equipment; frac plugs, frac sleeves, toe initiation burst port systems, and recyclable setting tools; electric submersible pumps, high viscosity pumps, and surface pumps; tubular coating and inspection services for drill-pipe and other oil country tubular goods; solids control and waste management equipment and services; data and digital solutions; precision-engineered drill pipe and drill-stem equipment; connectors and integral thread solutions, including conductor strings, surface casing, and liners; and composite pipe, tanks, and structures. Its Energy Equipment segment provides drilling equipment, such as land rigs, complete offshore drilling packages, and rig components; capital equipment, related consumables, and digital products for hydraulic stimulation, coiled tubing, and wireline services; marine and construction solutions; processing solutions for the separation and treatment of oil, gas, solids, seawater, and produced water production; flexible subsea pipe systems; cavity pumps, specialized mixers and heat exchangers; and reciprocating, multistage, and progressive cavity pumps, midstream products, including closures, transfer pumps, chokes and valves, as well as artificial lift support systems that include production BOPs and stuffing boxes. The company was formerly known as National Oilwell Varco, Inc. and changed its name to NOV Inc. in January 2021. NOV Inc. was founded in 1862 and is based in Houston, Texas.

Cactus, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, sells, and rents engineered pressure control and spoolable pipe technologies in the United States, Australia, Canada, the Middle East, and internationally. The company operates in two segments: Pressure Control and Spoolable Technologies. The Pressure Control segment designs, manufactures, sells, and rents a range of wellheads and pressure control equipment under the Cactus Wellhead brand through its service centers. Its products are sold and rented primarily for onshore unconventional oil and gas wells for drilling, completion, and production phases. This segment also offers field services for its products and rental items to assist with the installation, maintenance, and handling of the equipment. The Spoolable Technologies segment designs, manufactures, and sells spoolable pipes and associated end fittings under the FlexSteel brand. Its products are primarily used in production, gathering, and takeaway pipelines to transport oil, gas, and other liquids. This segment also provides field services and rental items to assist with installation through service centers and pipe yards, as well as equipment and services. The company also offers repair and refurbishment services for pressure control equipment. Cactus, Inc. was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Latest Energy Equipment & Services and NOV Inc., Cactus, Inc. Stock News

As of September 2, 2026, NOV Inc. had a $7.7 billion market capitalization, compared to the Energy Equipment & Services median of $1.4 million. NOV Inc.’s stock is up 37.5% in 2026, up 3.5% in the previous five trading days and up 65.73% in the past year.

Currently, NOV Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 83.8. NOV Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $8.6 billion with a 1.1% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was -2.5%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $0.929 per share for the current fiscal year. NOV Inc. currently has a 2.1% dividend yield.

As of September 2, 2026, Cactus, Inc. had a $5.0 billion market cap, putting it in the 67th percentile of all stocks. Cactus, Inc.’s stock is up 56.8% in 2026, up 4.5% in the previous five trading days and up 74.34% in the past year.

Currently, Cactus, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 60.9. Cactus, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $1.4 billion with a 12.0% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 64.3%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.960 per share for the current fiscal year. Cactus, Inc. currently has a 0.8% dividend yield.

How We Compare NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
NOV Inc.	NOV	C
Cactus, Inc.	WHD	C

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

NOV Inc. has a Growth Score of 47, which is Average. Cactus, Inc. has a Growth Score of 59, which is Average.

The Growth Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither NOV Inc., Cactus or Inc. has a high enough Growth Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if NOV Inc., Cactus or Inc. is the better investment when it comes to sustainable growth.

NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
NOV Inc.	NOV	B
Cactus, Inc.	WHD	C

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

NOV Inc. has a Quality Score of 71, which is Strong. Cactus, Inc. has a Quality Score of 57, which is Average.

The Quality Grade Winner: NOV Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, NOV Inc. has a better overall quality grade than Cactus, Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, NOV Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc.’s Momentum Grades

Company	Ticker	Momentum
NOV Inc.	NOV	B
Cactus, Inc.	WHD	A

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

NOV Inc. has a Momentum Score of 76, which is Strong. Cactus, Inc. has a Momentum Score of 86, which is Very Strong.

The Momentum Grade Winner: Cactus, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Momentum Grade breakdown above, Cactus, Inc. is considered to have stronger momentum compared to NOV Inc.. For those specifically looking for companies that have stronger momentum compared to other companies in the same industry, Cactus, Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc. Grades

In addition to Quality, Momentum and Growth, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Estimate Revisions.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, NOV Inc., Cactus or Inc. Stock?

Overall, NOV Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 47, Momentum Score of 76 and Quality Score of 71.

Cactus, Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 59, Momentum Score of 86 and Quality Score of 57.

Comparing NOV Inc., Cactus and Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.