Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Cut to Sector Perform at National Bank Financial

National Bank Financial cut shares of Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) from an outperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on CVE. StockNews.com lowered Cenovus Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Cenovus Energy from $31.00 to $28.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Cenovus Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $29.25.

Cenovus Energy Trading Down 4.5 %

Shares of CVE stock opened at $14.61 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.99 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.30. Cenovus Energy has a fifty-two week low of $13.76 and a fifty-two week high of $21.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.07 and a beta of 1.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) (TSE:CVE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The oil and gas company reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.27). Cenovus Energy had a net margin of 6.72% and a return on equity of 12.88%. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.08 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Cenovus Energy will post 1.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cenovus Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.1269 dividend. This represents a $0.51 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Cenovus Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cenovus Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CVE. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Cenovus Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 104.9% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,662 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 851 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 640.3% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,065 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 2,651 shares in the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $67,000. Finally, Natixis purchased a new stake in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $98,000. 51.19% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.