Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Shares Down 8.2% – Here’s Why

Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE)’s stock price dropped 8.2% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $23.96 and last traded at $23.82. Approximately 3,018,823 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 14,679,331 shares. The stock had previously closed at $25.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on CVE. Veritas upgraded shares of Cenovus Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 10th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a report on Friday, February 20th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Cenovus Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Cenovus Energy from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $29.67.

Cenovus Energy Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $23.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.80. The company has a market cap of $46.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.01 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.28 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $9.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.89 billion. Cenovus Energy had a net margin of 7.92% and a return on equity of 13.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.07 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Cenovus Energy Inc will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Cenovus Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. Cenovus Energy’s payout ratio is presently 37.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cenovus Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Cenovus Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 1,302.7% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,543 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 961.5% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,656 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cenovus Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 74.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,253 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 1,384 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 51.19% of the company’s stock.

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.