Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE) Short Interest Up 43.3% in May

Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of May. As of May 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,300,000 shares, a growth of 43.3% from the May 15th total of 12,770,000 shares. Currently, 1.5% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 11,580,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.6 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cenovus Energy

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Hawaiian Bank raised its stake in shares of Cenovus Energy by 7.0% during the 1st quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 65,385 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $910,000 after buying an additional 4,283 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its position in Cenovus Energy by 2,719.3% in the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 4,141,434 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $57,533,000 after acquiring an additional 3,994,539 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 6.3% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 747,472 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $10,397,000 after purchasing an additional 44,125 shares in the last quarter. Yaupon Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 1st quarter worth $19,735,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 574.8% during the 1st quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 21,607 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $301,000 after acquiring an additional 18,405 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.19% of the company's stock.

Cenovus Energy Stock Performance

Shares of CVE stock traded down $0.19 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $14.64. The company had a trading volume of 14,368,291 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,503,778. The stock has a market cap of $26.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.10 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $12.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $13.87. Cenovus Energy has a 52-week low of $10.23 and a 52-week high of $20.76.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas company reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $11.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.39 billion. Cenovus Energy had a net margin of 5.82% and a return on equity of 10.73%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.62 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Cenovus Energy will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cenovus Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 4.25%. This is a positive change from Cenovus Energy's previous dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Cenovus Energy's payout ratio is 54.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CVE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Cenovus Energy from $18.00 to $16.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. National Bankshares restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Veritas downgraded Cenovus Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $25.75.

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.

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