Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Shares Up 5.2% – What’s Next?

Shares of Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) shot up 5.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $25.13 and last traded at $25.1670. 10,874,598 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 28% from the average session volume of 15,173,533 shares. The stock had previously closed at $23.93.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on CVE shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Cenovus Energy from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Cenovus Energy from $22.00 to $29.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. 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. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Cenovus Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $29.67.

Cenovus Energy Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $21.19 and its 200-day moving average is $18.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $47.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.40 and a beta of 0.43.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 last year, the business earned $0.07 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Cenovus Energy Inc will post 1.49 EPS for the current year.

Cenovus Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Cenovus Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.91%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 291.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 106,582,971 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,809,758,000 after purchasing an additional 79,345,506 shares in the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its holdings in shares of Cenovus Energy by 440.8% in the 4th quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 15,414,179 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $260,797,000 after purchasing an additional 12,564,179 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 322.7% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 15,521,050 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $211,338,000 after purchasing an additional 11,849,355 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd lifted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 38,533,059 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $651,880,000 after purchasing an additional 11,019,212 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 46.7% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 30,643,806 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $520,196,000 after buying an additional 9,753,134 shares in the last quarter. 51.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cenovus Energy Company Profile

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.