Short Interest in Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN) Drops By 24.5%

Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 19,350,000 shares, a drop of 24.5% from the January 15th total of 25,630,000 shares. Currently, 3.1% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 10,020,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Devon Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DVN opened at $34.17 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $34.27 and its 200 day moving average is $38.72. The stock has a market cap of $22.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.98. Devon Energy has a 1-year low of $30.39 and a 1-year high of $55.09. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Devon Energy from $54.00 to $46.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised Devon Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upgraded shares of Devon Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Wolfe Research upgraded Devon Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Devon Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $43.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.45.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in DVN. EnCap Energy Capital Fund XI L.P. bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $461,857,000. EnCap Partners GP LLC bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the third quarter valued at about $408,653,000. EnCap Energy Capital Fund X L.P. bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the third quarter valued at about $230,928,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 80,682,170 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,640,727,000 after acquiring an additional 5,465,692 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Devon Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $154,170,000. 69.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Devon Energy Company Profile

Devon Energy Corporation, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. It operates in Delaware, Eagle Ford, Anadarko, Williston, and Powder River Basins. The company was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.