Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE) Short Interest Down 11.6% in July

Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) saw a large drop in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 15,260,000 shares, a drop of 11.6% from the July 15th total of 17,270,000 shares. Currently, 1.2% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 6,770,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CVE shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Cenovus Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Cenovus Energy from $35.00 to $34.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Raymond James raised shares of Cenovus Energy to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $30.67.

Institutional Trading of Cenovus Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Perspectives Inc acquired a new stake in Cenovus Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Cenovus Energy by 80.3% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,453 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 647 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in Cenovus Energy during the first quarter worth approximately $30,000. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in Cenovus Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Spire Wealth Management boosted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 41.9% during the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 2,305 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 681 shares in the last quarter. 51.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cenovus Energy Stock Performance

CVE traded down $0.11 during trading on Monday, reaching $19.50. 5,007,990 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,174,384. Cenovus Energy has a 52 week low of $14.69 and a 52 week high of $21.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $19.33 and a 200 day moving average of $19.33. The stock has a market cap of $36.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.83 and a beta of 2.07.

Cenovus Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.132 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. Cenovus Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.89%.

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.