Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) saw a significant drop in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,890,000 shares, a drop of 13.1% from the January 31st total of 14,830,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 9,400,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days. Approximately 1.0% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Cenovus Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CVE opened at $12.72 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51 and a beta of 1.99. Cenovus Energy has a 52 week low of $12.07 and a 52 week high of $21.90. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $14.76 and its two-hundred day moving average is $15.95.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The oil and gas company reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.27). Cenovus Energy had a return on equity of 10.73% and a net margin of 5.82%. The business had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.08 billion. Analysts anticipate that Cenovus Energy will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Cenovus Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.1269 dividend. This represents a $0.51 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.99%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Cenovus Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 40.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. National Bank Financial downgraded Cenovus Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Cenovus Energy from $26.00 to $25.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Cenovus Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 28th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $29.25.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cenovus Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CVE. Alberta Investment Management Corp lifted its stake in shares of Cenovus Energy by 10.1% in the 4th quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 4,494,400 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $68,094,000 after purchasing an additional 411,000 shares during the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cenovus Energy by 39.3% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 15,416,146 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $257,831,000 after purchasing an additional 4,351,960 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $11,569,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $3,472,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 1,289.9% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 430,781 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $6,526,000 after acquiring an additional 399,787 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.19% of the company’s stock.

About Cenovus Energy

Cenovus Energy Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, produces, refines, transports, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and refined petroleum products in Canada and internationally. The company operates through Oil Sands, Conventional, Offshore, Canadian Refining, and U.S. Refining segments.