Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) was downgraded by research analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on DVN. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Devon Energy from $59.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Devon Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 28th. Weiss Ratings raised Devon Energy from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Devon Energy from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.85.

Devon Energy Stock Performance

NYSE DVN opened at $44.14 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $27.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.01. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $48.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.36. Devon Energy has a fifty-two week low of $30.24 and a fifty-two week high of $52.71.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.34 billion. Devon Energy had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 15.22%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Devon Energy will post 4.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 24,342 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.21, for a total transaction of $1,149,185.82. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 130,540 shares in the company, valued at $6,162,793.40. This represents a 15.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour sold 70,029 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.66, for a total value of $3,267,553.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 428,452 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,991,570.32. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Devon Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in shares of Devon Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $9,931,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH raised its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 4.3% in the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 833,155 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $29,210,000 after purchasing an additional 33,974 shares during the last quarter. Investors Research Corp raised its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 13,787.5% in the fourth quarter. Investors Research Corp now owns 27,775 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,017,000 after purchasing an additional 27,575 shares during the last quarter. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC grew its holdings in Devon Energy by 43.8% during the fourth quarter. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC now owns 161,368 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $5,911,000 after acquiring an additional 49,115 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan grew its holdings in Devon Energy by 298.1% during the third quarter. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan now owns 42,351 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,585,000 after acquiring an additional 31,713 shares during the period. 69.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Devon Energy

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE: DVN) is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the exploration, development, production and marketing of hydrocarbons, including crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and natural gas. Devon operates as an upstream energy company that acquires, evaluates and develops onshore resource plays using a combination of drilling, completion and production optimization techniques.

Core business activities include identifying and developing energy reserves, operating well programs and managing reservoir performance to generate production and cash flow.