Geode Capital Management LLC Boosts Stake in Cenovus Energy Inc $CVE

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management increased its Cenovus Energy stake by 10.9% in the fourth quarter, lifting its holdings to 13.27 million shares valued at about $226.3 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains bullish on CVE, with a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $35.25; RBC also raised its target to $47 and several firms reiterated buy ratings.
• Cenovus reported solid results and a higher dividend, beating earnings and revenue estimates for the quarter and raising its quarterly payout to $0.22 per share from $0.20.

Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE - Free Report) TSE: CVE by 10.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 13,274,142 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 1,305,123 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.70% of Cenovus Energy worth $226,307,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CVE. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Cenovus Energy by 291.3% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 106,582,971 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,809,758,000 after acquiring an additional 79,345,506 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Cenovus Energy by 322.7% during the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 15,521,050 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $211,338,000 after buying an additional 11,849,355 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of Cenovus Energy by 46.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 30,643,806 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $520,196,000 after buying an additional 9,753,134 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Cenovus Energy by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,525,477 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,074,660,000 after purchasing an additional 7,197,843 shares during the period. Finally, Canoe Financial LP purchased a new stake in Cenovus Energy during the 4th quarter worth $102,662,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 51.19% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CVE. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Cenovus Energy from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Zacks Research raised shares of Cenovus Energy from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered shares of Cenovus Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $35.25.

Cenovus Energy Price Performance

NYSE CVE opened at $29.30 on Wednesday. Cenovus Energy Inc has a 12 month low of $12.88 and a 12 month high of $32.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 1.57 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.78 billion, a PE ratio of 16.10 and a beta of 0.34. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $27.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $22.25.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The oil and gas company reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by $0.05. Cenovus Energy had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 15.29%. The business had revenue of $10.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.47 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Cenovus Energy Inc will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cenovus Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This is an increase from Cenovus Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Cenovus Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.42%.

Cenovus Energy Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CVE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Cenovus Energy Inc (NYSE:CVE - Free Report) TSE: CVE.

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.