Scotia Capital Inc. Trims Stake in Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE)

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. has reduced its stake in Cenovus Energy by 19.3%, now holding 922,101 shares worth approximately $12.8 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Cenovus Energy reported $0.33 earnings per share for the last quarter, significantly beating the consensus estimate of $0.14, though revenue decreased 12.6% year-over-year.
• The company has increased its dividend to $0.20 per share, up from $0.11, reflecting a substantial boost in its payout ratio to 54.21%.

Scotia Capital Inc. cut its position in shares of Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE - Free Report) TSE: CVE by 19.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 922,101 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 220,352 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. owned 0.05% of Cenovus Energy worth $12,805,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Cenovus Energy by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 191,412,590 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,901,131,000 after purchasing an additional 26,127,617 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Cenovus Energy by 56.5% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 19,481,233 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $270,742,000 after purchasing an additional 7,035,004 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Cenovus Energy by 48.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,001,002 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $196,935,000 after purchasing an additional 4,220,663 shares during the period. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 91.7% in the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 7,233,491 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $109,515,000 after purchasing an additional 3,460,311 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 53.7% in the first quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,030,017 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $111,698,000 after acquiring an additional 2,803,862 shares in the last quarter. 51.19% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Cenovus Energy Price Performance

Shares of CVE stock traded down $0.15 on Thursday, reaching $14.71. The company's stock had a trading volume of 10,107,880 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,991,390. Cenovus Energy Inc has a 1 year low of $10.23 and a 1 year high of $20.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $14.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $13.70. The company has a market capitalization of $26.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.97.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The oil and gas company reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.14 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $10.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.64 billion. Cenovus Energy had a return on equity of 9.06% and a net margin of 5.18%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 12.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.62 EPS. Analysts forecast that Cenovus Energy Inc will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cenovus Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a yield of 425.0%. This is a positive change from Cenovus Energy's previous dividend of $0.11. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. Cenovus Energy's payout ratio is 56.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CVE has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Veritas cut shares of Cenovus Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. National Bankshares restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cenovus Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Cenovus Energy from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Cenovus Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $23.33.

Cenovus Energy Profile

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.