logo
Former Executives Admitted NOV Underpaid Commissions Owed to Enhanced Industrial Technologies

Former Executives Admitted NOV Underpaid Commissions Owed to Enhanced Industrial Technologies

Business Wire14-05-2025

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--New admissions from National Oilwell Varco's (NYSE:NOV) former senior executives reveal that the company reported costs instead of sales revenues when calculating commissions owed to Enhanced Industrial Technologies, LLC ('EIT') under a consulting agreement that helped launch NOV's oil & gas separations business. The admissions are central to the fraud and breach-of-contract lawsuit pending in Harris County District Court (Cause No. 2021-12076), in which EIT seeks $62 million in actual damages, plus punitive damages.
"All we ever asked was to be paid what we earned. NOV's own leaders have confirmed we were shortchanged — and yet they continue to stonewall." - John Ettere, President of EIT
Share
In sworn deposition testimony, Larry Engel, former President of NOV's Process & Flow Technologies division, confirmed that EIT was to be paid commissions based on the sales price of equipment, not its costs. Mr. Engel further admitted that he had no idea what the sales prices of the equipment were and never investigated whether NOV was paying EIT properly, despite personally reassuring EIT multiple times orally and in writing that it had been paid in full.
Similarly, Lionel Boudreaux, former VP of Process Equipment at NOV, and Mark Neuman, a former NOV Engineering Team Leader, each acknowledged that NOV was required to report the 'sales value' of equipment sold—but instead reported only internal costs. As a result, commissions owed to EIT were significantly and systematically underpaid.
Despite these admissions, NOV has still not paid EIT its full commissions, more than a decade after the contract was signed and more than two years after confirming the underpayments. When asked about the testimony, John Ettere, the Founder of Enhanced Industrial Technologies, said: "All we ever asked was to be paid what we earned. NOV's own leaders have confirmed we were shortchanged — and yet they continue to stonewall."
Tom Schmidt of Schmidt Law Firm, counsel for EIT in the case, said: 'NOV had a choice — honor their word, or enrich themselves at the little guy's expense.' He added: 'They chose the latter. Large companies should not behave that way. This lawsuit seeks to hold NOV accountable."
The lawsuit alleges that NOV breached its contractual obligations, misrepresented sales data, and committed fraud over the past decade.
No findings have yet been made by the Court. A copy of the Petition is available here.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

2 Dire Warnings for Auto Investors to Heed
2 Dire Warnings for Auto Investors to Heed

Yahoo

time31 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

2 Dire Warnings for Auto Investors to Heed

John Murphy's "Car Wars" report offers insights into the automotive industry. Ever-changing EV sentiment has made strategic planning a challenge for carmakers. Meanwhile, China's fierce price war is eating at automakers' bottom lines. 10 stocks we like better than Ford Motor Company › The automotive industry is currently whipsawing back and forth with the uncertainty of tariffs hanging over the manufacturers, suppliers, and -- ultimately -- consumers. That's perfect timing for one of the automotive industry's most highly anticipated presentations: Car Wars, by Bank of America auto analyst John Murphy. This year's edition recently arrived, and it had a few important takeaways for auto investors as well as automakers -- from the young and niche players such as Rivian Automotive (NASDAQ: RIVN) and Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), all the way to more historical players such as General Motors (NYSE: GM). "The unprecedented EV head-fake has wreaked havoc on product plans," Murphy said in the bank's annual report, according to CNBC. "The next four-plus years will be the most uncertain and volatile time in product strategy ever." The electric vehicle (EV) industry is still growing, but it's just growing in the U.S. at a pace much slower than originally predicted. While countries such as China are testing EV market share around 50%, the U.S. is lagging behind, and the current administration could make things worse by pulling federal support for EVs. But automakers' product plans, designs, and vehicle strategies span years, so changing course surrounding something such as EVs could get expensive, and that's partly what Murphy sees happening. This is important for investors because big changes in plans could mean big charges and write-downs. One example is Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) and its $1.9 billion in expenses and write-downs due to the cancellation of its planned electric three-row SUV. And it's just one of what will be many such developments in the coming years. In his report last year, Murphy said, "I think you have to see the [Detroit Big Three] exit China as soon as they possibly can," according to Reuters. Now, the situation in China is even worse, and the brutal price war has engulfed the entire EV industry. The problem is that it's likely to get even worse before it gets better, and some analysts question whether the industry can pull out of the price war before imploding with weakening demand, overcapacity, and too many brands. BYD, China's juggernaut EV maker, just slashed prices last month by as much as 34% on 22 electric and plug-in hybrid models, effective through the end of June. The price cuts are across the board, and the average retail price in China has fallen roughly 19% over the past two years, according to a Nomura report. That's better than the 27% drop in hybrid or range-extension vehicles, or the 21% decline battery-only vehicles. General Motors is a good example. China once generated $2 billion in income for the company, although those days may be long gone. Thanks to deep cost cuts and a slight improvement in sales, its operations in China were profitable during the fourth quarter of 2024, reversing numerous quarters of losses. However, it recorded a roughly $4 billion charge to cover restructuring efforts in that country. Adapting to the current conditions in China will require massive effort and likely restructuring costs. Ultimately, there's a lot of uncertainty facing automakers. With China's price war, Chinese EV companies expanding overseas with prices the competition can't match, tariff uncertainty, and ever-changing EV consumer sentiment, there's a lot on an automaker's plate. With these warnings regarding China and potential one-time charges and write-offs due to rapidly changing strategies, investors would be wise to take the long view when it comes to auto investments. It's going to be an uphill battle for automakers in the near term until China's market stabilizes and EV growth is more consistent and reliable in the U.S. market. Before you buy stock in Ford Motor Company, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Ford Motor Company wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $660,341!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $874,192!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 999% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 173% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of June 9, 2025 Bank of America is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Daniel Miller has positions in Ford Motor Company and General Motors. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bank of America and Tesla. The Motley Fool recommends BYD Company and General Motors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 2 Dire Warnings for Auto Investors to Heed was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data

VPT Announces New VP of North American Sales, Trevor Rice
VPT Announces New VP of North American Sales, Trevor Rice

Yahoo

time36 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

VPT Announces New VP of North American Sales, Trevor Rice

BLACKSBURG, Va., June 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- VPT, Inc., a global leader in high-reliability power conversion solutions and a HEICO company (NYSE: HEI.A) (NYSE: HEI), is pleased to announce the appointment of Trevor Rice as Vice President of North American Sales. With more than 25 years of sales management experience, Rice will lead VPT's Outside Sales Team, Inside Sales Operations, and an extensive network of North American representatives. His leadership will be instrumental in advancing VPT's mission to deliver high-reliability DC-DC power conversion solutions. Prior to joining VPT, Rice spent 16 years with XP Power, a global manufacturer of AC-DC, DC-DC, high voltage, and RF power solutions. As Director of Sales, he led a team of Direct Sales Managers serving key sectors including semiconductor fabrication, healthcare, industrial, and defense markets. Rice began his career at Blacksburg-based Luna Innovations, where he held multiple engineering and sales positions, including Director of Business Development. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. "I'm thrilled to join VPT and contribute to a company with such a strong legacy in high-reliability power solutions," said Trevor Rice. "I look forward to working with our sales team and representatives to build on their successes and deliver value to our customers across North America." "Trevor's extensive technical background and decades of leadership in power conversion solutions make him an exceptional addition to our team," said Paul Andersen, who previously served as VPT's Vice President of North American Sales. "His addition to the team reinforces VPT's commitment to innovation and delivering customer-focused solutions in the power electronics industry." To learn more about VPT's leadership team and high-reliability power solutions, visit About VPT and HEICOVPT, Inc., part of the HEICO Electronic Technologies Group, is a global provider of innovative DC-DC power converters and EMI filters for avionics, military and space applications. Every day, organizations like NASA, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, BAE Systems, Thales, and many more depend on high-reliability solutions from VPT to power critical systems. For more information about VPT, please visit HEICO Corporation (NYSE:HEI.A) (NYSE:HEI) is engaged primarily in niche segments of the aviation, defense, space and electronics industries through its Hollywood, FL based HEICO Aerospace Holdings Corp. subsidiary and its Miami, FL-based HEICO Electronic Technologies Corp. subsidiary. For more information about HEICO, please visit Products described in this communication are subject to all export license restrictions and regulations which may include but are not limited to ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations) and the Export Administration and Foreign Assets Control Regulations. Further restrictions may apply. The information provided is considered accurate at time of publication, errors or omissions excepted. VPT, Inc. reserves the right to make changes to products or services without prior notification and advises customers to obtain the latest version of all relevant technical information from VPT to verify data prior to placing orders. VPT, its logo and tagline are registered trademarks in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. All other names, product names and trade names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE VPT, Inc. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data

Tiger Finance Provides $35 Million in Funding for The Beachbody Co.
Tiger Finance Provides $35 Million in Funding for The Beachbody Co.

Yahoo

timean hour ago

  • Yahoo

Tiger Finance Provides $35 Million in Funding for The Beachbody Co.

--Turnaround financing, done in partnership with SG Credit Partners, designed to support fitness and nutrition company's transition to a new business model. NEW YORK, June 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Tiger Capital Group's lending platform, Tiger Finance, has provided $35 million in financing to The Beachbody Company, Inc. (NYSE:BODI), a leading fitness and nutrition company. SG Credit Partners participated with Tiger in the funding package, which included an immediate $25 million term loan, as well as a $10 million uncommitted accordion. The three-year loan facility allowed the El Segundo, California-based company to retire $17.3 million of outstanding debt, while adding approximately $5 million of capital to its balance sheet. "We're very excited to partner with Beachbody to support their expansion in the digital fitness and nutrition space," said Andy Babcock, Managing Director at Tiger Finance. "Our team believes that this and other strategic moves by management should position Beachbody for greater profitability and long-term growth." Carl Daikeler, Beachbody Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer, added: "Tiger's belief in our business plan and flexible approach to lending gave us the liquidity to execute on our efforts to open new and more profitable channels of distribution. We are thrilled to partner with them and SG Credit Partners on our turnaround strategy." About Tiger FinanceStretch asset-based lender Tiger Finance approaches investing decisions based upon Asset Intelligence. Providing first-lien, second-lien, and split-lien facilities, typically structured as term debt, Tiger Finance advances against working capital, machinery and equipment, fixtures, real estate, and intellectual property across a wide range of industries. It is a division of Tiger Capital Group, which specializes in the provision of secured debt financing and equity investments, as well as comprehensive appraisals for the ABL industry and the disposition of consumer and industrial assets. About BODi and The Beachbody Company, known as Beachbody, BODi has been innovating structured step-by-step home fitness and nutrition programs for 25 years such as P90X, Insanity, and 21-Day Fix, plus the first premium superfood nutrition supplement, Shakeology. Since its inception in 1999 BODi has helped over 30 million customers pursue extraordinary life-changing results. The BODi community represents millions of people helping each other stay accountable to goals of healthy weight loss, improved strength and energy, and resilient mental and physical well-being. For more information, please visit Media Contacts: At Jaffe Communications, Elisa Krantz, (908) 789-0700, elisa@ View original content: SOURCE Tiger Group

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store