Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) Downgraded to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded Devon Energy from strong-buy to hold, adding to a mixed analyst picture that still shows an overall Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $57.85.
• Devon Energy’s latest quarterly results missed estimates, with EPS of $1.04 versus $1.06 expected and revenue of $3.81 billion versus $4.34 billion expected. Revenue also fell 14.5% from a year earlier.
• Company insiders have been selling shares, including SVP Adam M. Vela and EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour, while institutional investors still hold the bulk of the stock at 69.72%.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on DVN. Capital One Financial decreased their target price on Devon Energy from $64.00 to $63.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Devon Energy from $61.00 to $60.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Devon Energy from $59.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Devon Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Devon Energy from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Devon Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.85.

Devon Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DVN opened at $44.14 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $48.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.36. The stock has a market cap of $27.43 billion, a PE ratio of 12.30 and a beta of 0.43. Devon Energy has a 52 week low of $30.24 and a 52 week high of $52.71.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.34 billion. Devon Energy had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 15.22%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.82 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Devon Energy will post 4.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 24,342 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.21, for a total transaction of $1,149,185.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 130,540 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,162,793.40. This represents a 15.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour sold 70,029 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.66, for a total value of $3,267,553.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 428,452 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,991,570.32. This represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. SouthState Bank Corp boosted its position in shares of Devon Energy by 173.6% during the 1st quarter. SouthState Bank Corp now owns 766 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Ameriflex Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Devon Energy by 702.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 802 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. 69.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Devon Energy Company Profile

Devon Energy Corporation NYSE: DVN is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the exploration, development, production and marketing of hydrocarbons, including crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and natural gas. Devon operates as an upstream energy company that acquires, evaluates and develops onshore resource plays using a combination of drilling, completion and production optimization techniques.

Core business activities include identifying and developing energy reserves, operating well programs and managing reservoir performance to generate production and cash flow.

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