NOV Inc. NOV is set to release fourth-quarter 2020 results after the closing bell on Thursday, Feb 4. The current Zacks Consensus Estimate for the to-be-reported quarter is a loss of 12 cents per share on revenues of $1.3 billion.Let’s delve into the factors that might have influenced the oilfield services company’s performance in the December quarter. But it’s worth taking a look at NOV’s previous-quarter result first.Highlights of Q3 Earnings & Surprise HistoryIn the last-reported quarter, the Houston, TX-based provider of equipment and technology to the oil and gas exploration and production firms beat the consensus mark primarily due to better-than-expected revenues from the Completion & Production Solutions segment. NOV reported adjusted loss per share of one cent, narrower than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 9 cents. Further, total revenues of $1.38 billion outperformed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.6%.As far as earnings surprises are concerned, NOV beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters and missed in the other, delivering an earnings surprise of 36.63%, on average. This is depicted in the graph below:NOV Inc. Price and EPS Surprise NOV Inc. price-eps-surprise | NOV Inc. Quote Trend in Estimate RevisionThe Zacks Consensus Estimate for the third-quarter bottom line remained the same in the last seven days. However, the estimated figure indicates 192.3% deterioration year over year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenues, meanwhile, suggests 41.8% decline from the year-ago period.Factors to ConsiderPer a recent company update for the fourth quarter, softness in international markets and lower demand for capital equipment offset the ramp-up in North American activity levels that led to higher revenues in the United States for its shorter-cycle businesses. This, in turn, hurt the quarterly performance of its three units, namely Rig Technologies, Wellbore Technologies and Completion & Production Solutions, which fell below the company’s expectations. Consequently, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for the fourth-quarter adjusted EBITDA for Rig Technologies, Wellbore Technologies and Completion & Production Solutions are pegged at $30.86 million, $24.25 million and $42.89 million, respectively, indicating a decrease of 72.4%, 83% and 55.3% year over year.The renewed spike in COVID-19 cases forced customers to delay orders, inducing a slowdown in bookings during the latter half of the final quarter. However, NOV managed to attain a sequential uptick of 27% in orders for its Completion & Production Solutions segment and a 105% surge in book-to-bill for its Rig Technologies segment. In particular, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for new orders booked by the unit for the to-be-reported quarter stands at $202 million, implying a 19.5% increase from $169 million in the July-September period.NOV has also done a fairly admirable job at reducing costs. In the previous quarter, the company’s gross margin was up by 1% sequentially to 10%, a trend that is most likely to have continued in the fourth quarter because of progress in cost-reduction initiatives. Apart from significant capital cuts, the company should realize sizeable savings from headcount reduction and operating cost control. In fact, NOV went past its $700 million annualized cost savings target in the third quarter itself. All this is expected to have pushed the company’s fourth-quarter earnings and cash flows higher.What Does Our Model Say?The proven Zacks model does not conclusively predict an earnings beat for NOV this time around. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of beating estimates. But that’s not the case here.You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.Earnings ESP: Earnings ESP, which represents the difference between the Most Accurate Estimate and the Zacks Consensus Estimate, for this company is -14.06%.Zacks Rank: NOV has a Zacks Rank #3.Stocks to ConsiderWhile an earnings beat looks uncertain for NOV, here are some firms from the energy space that you may want to consider on the basis of our model:NuStar Energy L.P. NS has an Earnings ESP of +21.21% and a Zacks Rank #2. The firm is scheduled to release earnings on Feb 4.You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Exxon Mobil Corporation XOM has an Earnings ESP of +107.40% and is Zacks #3 Ranked. The firm is scheduled to release earnings on Feb 2.Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. PTEN has an Earnings ESP of +4.99% and is Zacks #3 Ranked. The firm is scheduled to release earnings on Feb 4.Legal Marijuana: An Investor’s DreamImagine getting in early on a young industry primed to skyrocket from $17.7 billion in 2019 to an expected $73.6 billion by 2027. Although marijuana stocks did better as the pandemic took hold than the market as a whole, they’ve been pushed down. This is exactly the right time to get in on selected strong companies at a fraction of their value before COVID struck. Zacks’ Special Report, Marijuana Moneymakers, reveals 10 exciting tickers for urgent consideration.Download Marijuana Moneymakers FREE >>Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Exxon Mobil Corporation (XOM): Free Stock Analysis Report NuStar Energy L.P. (NS): Get Free Report NOV Inc. (NOV): Get Free Report PattersonUTI Energy, Inc. (PTEN): Get Free Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research