Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Sets New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• 52-week high: Cenovus traded as high as $30.15 Tuesday (last $29.955) on heavy volume and is trading well above its 50-day ($24.92) and 200-day ($20.49) moving averages.
• Analyst sentiment: Wall Street is broadly positive with a consensus "Buy" rating (four Strong Buy, eight Buy, two Hold); RBC lifted its target to $31 while the MarketBeat consensus target is $29.67.
• Fundamentals: Cenovus beat quarterly EPS ($0.36 vs. $0.28) but missed revenue expectations ($9.44B vs. $10.89B), pays a $0.20 quarterly dividend (2.7% yield) and shows modest leverage (debt/equity 0.35).

Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $30.15 and last traded at $29.9550, with a volume of 9781445 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $29.27.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Cenovus Energy from $29.00 to $31.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Veritas upgraded Cenovus Energy from a "strong sell" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Scotiabank upgraded Cenovus Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Cenovus Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Cenovus Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $29.67.

Cenovus Energy Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $56.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58 and a beta of 0.37. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $20.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 19th. The oil and gas company reported $0.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.08. Cenovus Energy had a return on equity of 13.25% and a net margin of 7.92%.The firm had revenue of $9.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.07 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Cenovus Energy Inc will post 2.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cenovus Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. Cenovus Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.56%.

Institutional Trading of Cenovus Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 1,302.7% in the 4th quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,543 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 1,433 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 961.5% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,656 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Cenovus Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 74.1% in the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,253 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 1,384 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.19% of the company's stock.

About Cenovus Energy

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.

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