Royal Bank Of Canada Reaffirms “Outperform” Rating for Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV)

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating reiterated by analysts at Royal Bank Of Canada in a research report issued on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. They presently have a $55.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada’s target price points to a potential upside of 8.82% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ovintiv from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ovintiv from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target on shares of Ovintiv in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating and set a $47.00 target price on shares of Ovintiv in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, TD Cowen upgraded shares of Ovintiv to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ovintiv currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.22.

Ovintiv Price Performance

Shares of OVV traded down $0.13 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $50.54. The stock had a trading volume of 3,877,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,327,551. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The company has a market capitalization of $12.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s 50-day moving average is $41.67 and its 200 day moving average is $40.46. Ovintiv has a 12-month low of $29.80 and a 12-month high of $51.23.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Gregory Dean Givens sold 50,000 shares of Ovintiv stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total transaction of $2,016,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 105,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,269,616.11. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ovintiv

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 263.8% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,949,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,866,000 after buying an additional 3,589,030 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 116.3% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 5,692,806 shares of the company’s stock valued at $223,101,000 after acquiring an additional 3,060,691 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in Ovintiv by 143.8% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,739,237 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,205,233 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Ovintiv by 25.8% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,389,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,165,000 after acquiring an additional 1,927,193 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Goldentree Asset Management LP bought a new position in Ovintiv during the 4th quarter worth about $61,528,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.81% of the company’s stock.

About Ovintiv

Ovintiv Inc is a North American energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Formerly known as Encana Corporation, the company rebranded as Ovintiv in January 2020 and established its headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Ovintiv’s upstream portfolio spans multiple unconventional resource plays, reflecting a strategy centered on high-return projects and disciplined capital allocation.

The company’s core business activities include the acquisition and development of acreage in major shale basins across the United States and Canada.