Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) Trading Up 0.9% – Time to Buy?

Shares of Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN) were up 0.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $36.83 and last traded at $37.06. Approximately 1,830,857 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 10,560,949 shares. The stock had previously closed at $36.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on DVN shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Devon Energy from $49.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wolfe Research raised Devon Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $45.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Devon Energy from $55.00 to $50.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays decreased their target price on Devon Energy from $55.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Devon Energy from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.41.

Devon Energy Stock Down 1.3 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $35.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $40.02. The firm has a market cap of $23.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 2.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The energy company reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.09 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.72 billion. Devon Energy had a net margin of 21.71% and a return on equity of 24.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.65 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Devon Energy Co. will post 4.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Devon Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.45%. Devon Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 16.33%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Devon Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Devon Energy by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,892,970 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $619,747,000 after acquiring an additional 206,884 shares during the last quarter. EnCap Energy Capital Fund XI L.P. acquired a new stake in Devon Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $461,857,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in Devon Energy by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,591,168 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $453,446,000 after acquiring an additional 1,677,652 shares during the last quarter. EnCap Partners GP LLC acquired a new stake in Devon Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $408,653,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Devon Energy by 3.8% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,971,343 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $390,079,000 after buying an additional 361,968 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.72% of the company’s stock.

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.