Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV) Stock Price Down 7.2% – Time to Sell?

Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) shares fell 7.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $55.41 and last traded at $56.3590. 1,157,174 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 4,951,288 shares. The stock had previously closed at $60.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on OVV. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Ovintiv in a research report on Friday, March 27th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $68.00 target price on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ovintiv from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Ovintiv from $42.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Scotiabank raised their target price on Ovintiv from $58.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $54.00 target price on shares of Ovintiv in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ovintiv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $59.95.

Ovintiv Stock Down 7.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $15.93 billion, a PE ratio of 11.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $52.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.78.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.41. Ovintiv had a return on equity of 12.00% and a net margin of 13.94%.The business had revenue of $1.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($0.23) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Ovintiv Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ovintiv Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Ovintiv’s payout ratio is currently 24.79%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Howard John Mayson sold 5,000 shares of Ovintiv stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.39, for a total transaction of $261,950.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 45,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,398,414.20. The trade was a 9.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Meghan Nicole Eilers sold 11,582 shares of Ovintiv stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.78, for a total value of $634,461.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 54,092 shares in the company, valued at $2,963,159.76. This represents a 17.64% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. McIlrath & Eck LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ovintiv during the third quarter valued at $31,000. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new position in Ovintiv in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new position in Ovintiv in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in Ovintiv in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Ovintiv in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.81% of the company’s stock.

About Ovintiv

Ovintiv Inc is a North American energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Formerly known as Encana Corporation, the company rebranded as Ovintiv in January 2020 and established its headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Ovintiv’s upstream portfolio spans multiple unconventional resource plays, reflecting a strategy centered on high-return projects and disciplined capital allocation.

The company’s core business activities include the acquisition and development of acreage in major shale basins across the United States and Canada.