Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-one ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $57.8889.

DVN has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup raised their target price on Devon Energy from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Argus lifted their price objective on Devon Energy from $41.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Devon Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and set a $72.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Devon Energy from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on Devon Energy from $61.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour sold 70,029 shares of Devon Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.66, for a total transaction of $3,267,553.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 428,452 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,991,570.32. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 24,342 shares of Devon Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.21, for a total value of $1,149,185.82. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 130,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,162,793.40. The trade was a 15.72% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 4.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Devon Energy

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

Devon Energy Stock Performance

NYSE DVN opened at $45.98 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $28.57 billion, a PE ratio of 12.81 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $42.74. Devon Energy has a 1-year low of $31.32 and a 1-year high of $52.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

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 firm had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 was down 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.82 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Devon Energy will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.32 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Devon Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Devon Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.74%.

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.