Brokerages Set Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE) Target Price at $27.00

Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) has received a consensus recommendation of “Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and four have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $27.00.

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial raised Cenovus Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Cenovus Energy in a report on Friday, January 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $20.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Cenovus Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Thursday, November 20th.

Cenovus Energy Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE CVE opened at $16.41 on Wednesday. Cenovus Energy has a 1-year low of $10.23 and a 1-year high of $18.75. The company has a 50-day moving average of $17.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $16.39. The company has a market cap of $30.91 billion, a PE ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.12. Cenovus Energy had a net margin of 6.23% and a return on equity of 10.73%. The business had revenue of $10.87 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.51 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.42 earnings per share. Cenovus Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Cenovus Energy will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cenovus Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. Cenovus Energy’s payout ratio is presently 46.72%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cenovus Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CVE. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 291.3% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 106,582,971 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,809,758,000 after purchasing an additional 79,345,506 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 322.7% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 15,521,050 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $211,338,000 after acquiring an additional 11,849,355 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 46.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 30,643,806 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $520,196,000 after acquiring an additional 9,753,134 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc grew its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 494.2% during the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 11,442,043 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $194,493,000 after purchasing an additional 9,516,460 shares during the period. Finally, Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in Cenovus Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $74,895,000. 51.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cenovus Energy Company Profile

Cenovus Energy Inc is a Canadian integrated energy company engaged in the exploration, development and production of crude oil, natural gas liquids and natural gas, together with downstream refining and marketing activities. Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Cenovus operates a mix of oil sands thermal and dilbit assets, conventional oil and gas properties, and owns refining and midstream assets designed to move and process hydrocarbons into finished petroleum products for commercial markets.

The company was originally formed as a spin‑off from Encana Corporation in 2009 and has grown through organic development and strategic acquisitions.