Devon Energy Corporation $DVN Stock Position Reduced by Savant Capital LLC

Key Points

• Savant Capital LLC sharply reduced its Devon Energy stake by 88.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 212,088 shares and leaving it with 28,401 shares worth about $1.04 million.
• Devon Energy reported mixed quarterly results, with EPS of $1.04 missing estimates and revenue of $3.81 billion falling short of expectations; analysts now forecast full-year EPS of 4.24.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.32 per share from $0.24, while analysts remain generally constructive with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and a $57.89 price target.

Savant Capital LLC cut its stake in shares of Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN - Free Report) by 88.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,401 shares of the energy company's stock after selling 212,088 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC's holdings in Devon Energy were worth $1,040,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DVN. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in Devon Energy by 78.7% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,360,499 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $202,327,000 after purchasing an additional 2,802,137 shares in the last quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC grew its position in Devon Energy by 2,132.3% during the second quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 1,751,276 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $55,708,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672,824 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Devon Energy by 446.7% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,236,301 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $45,286,000 after purchasing an additional 1,010,170 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Devon Energy by 704.3% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 975,114 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $34,187,000 after purchasing an additional 853,875 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in Devon Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $24,766,000. 69.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Devon Energy News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option buying suggests traders are positioning for more upside in Devon Energy, with call volume more than doubling versus the recent average.
• Positive Sentiment: Capital One kept an overweight rating on Devon Energy and still sees meaningful upside, even after lowering its price target from $63 to $61. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Devon Energy was recently highlighted as a trending stock on Zacks, indicating rising investor interest and potential momentum in the name. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: The stock also benefited from a broader move higher in energy shares on Monday, as the sector gained on stronger trading. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Devon Energy was again cited as a trending stock, but the headline mainly reflects elevated attention rather than a clear fundamental catalyst. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Media reports say Devon Energy received an $8 billion offer for its Marcellus assets, which could be strategically important but is still only a reported bid. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: The only clearly cautious development was Capital One’s reduced price target, signaling slightly less bullish valuation expectations than before.

Devon Energy Price Performance

NYSE DVN opened at $46.24 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 stock has a market capitalization of $28.73 billion, a PE ratio of 12.88 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $47.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $42.51. Devon Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $30.80 and a 12-month high of $52.71.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.34 billion. Devon Energy had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 15.22%. Devon Energy's revenue was down 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Devon Energy Corporation will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Devon Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Devon Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 26.74%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour sold 70,029 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 428,452 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,991,570.32. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 24,342 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 130,540 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,162,793.40. The trade was a 15.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 4.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on DVN. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Devon Energy from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Argus boosted their price objective on shares of Devon Energy from $41.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $52.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Devon Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Devon Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and set a $72.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Devon Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.89.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.