Devon Energy Corporation $DVN Position Boosted by Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management increased its Devon Energy stake by 413.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 139,291 shares worth about $5.1 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains bullish on DVN: several analysts raised price targets, and the stock now carries a Moderate Buy consensus with an average target price of $57.30.
• Devon Energy announced a $2.6 billion acquisition in the Delaware Basin, boosted its quarterly dividend to $0.32 per share, and recently reported earnings that missed both EPS and revenue estimates.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN - Free Report) by 413.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 139,291 shares of the energy company's stock after purchasing an additional 112,166 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in Devon Energy were worth $5,102,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in DVN. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 6,712 shares of the energy company's stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 254 shares during the period. Aprio Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 4.1% in the third quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,521 shares of the energy company's stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the period. Accredited Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 61.6% in the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 808 shares of the energy company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 308 shares during the period. Lindenwold Advisors INC boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 1.2% in the third quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 27,094 shares of the energy company's stock worth $950,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the period. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 2.6% in the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,620 shares of the energy company's stock worth $442,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.72% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on DVN shares. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $66.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $59.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Tudor Pickering upgraded shares of Devon Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $59.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.30.

Key Devon Energy News

Here are the key news stories impacting Devon Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Devon announced a major $2.6 billion acquisition of 16,300 net undeveloped acres in the core Delaware Basin, adding about 400 drilling locations and extending its long-term inventory. The company says the acreage has favorable economics, strong productivity, and will be funded with cash while keeping its credit profile intact. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target on DVN to $66 from $59 and kept an overweight rating, signaling Wall Street sees upside from current levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Devon also said it completed merger-related integration steps with Coterra and launched note exchange offers, which may help simplify and manage the combined capital structure after the deal. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks users have been heavily searching for Devon Energy, which mainly reflects elevated investor attention rather than a direct fundamental change. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks Research mostly kept a Strong Buy view, but cut several near- and medium-term EPS estimates for Devon, which could modestly temper sentiment around future earnings.
• Negative Sentiment: Devon’s recent exchange offers require eligible Coterra noteholders to accept slightly less than full principal value in the new notes and cash package, which is a mild negative for those holders even if it helps Devon manage debt after the merger.

Devon Energy Stock Performance

DVN stock opened at $47.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.01. The stock has a market cap of $29.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.17 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $41.94. Devon Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $30.24 and a 52 week high of $52.71.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.81 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.34 billion. Devon Energy had a return on equity of 15.22% and a net margin of 13.71%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.82 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Devon Energy Corporation will post 5.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.32 per share. This is an increase from Devon Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Devon Energy's dividend payout ratio is 26.74%.

Insider Activity at Devon Energy

In related news, EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour sold 70,029 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.66, for a total transaction of $3,267,553.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 428,452 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,991,570.32. This trade represents a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 24,342 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 130,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,162,793.40. This represents a 15.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company's stock.

Devon Energy 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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