Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Saturday morning.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on CVE. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Cenovus Energy from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Cenovus Energy from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research note on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $29.67.

Cenovus Energy Stock Down 5.6%

NYSE CVE opened at $24.49 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $24.02 and a 200-day moving average of $19.87. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.01 and a beta of 0.34. Cenovus Energy has a 52 week low of $11.60 and a 52 week high of $27.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.57.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.89 billion. Cenovus Energy had a return on equity of 13.25% and a net margin of 7.92%.During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.07 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Cenovus Energy will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Cenovus Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. Cenovus Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 38.56%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co lifted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 34.8% during the first quarter. PKO Investment Management Joint Stock Co now owns 46,500 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,232,000 after acquiring an additional 12,000 shares in the last quarter. Purpose Unlimited Inc. bought a new position in Cenovus Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $8,685,000. Larry Mathis Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in Cenovus Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $181,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 33.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 45,142 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $764,000 after acquiring an additional 11,202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Cenovus Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $184,000. 51.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Cenovus Energy

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.