Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) Stake Raised by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV - Free Report) by 221.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 26,480 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 18,248 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Ovintiv were worth $1,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new stake in Ovintiv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Ovintiv by 71.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 805 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in Ovintiv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Optiver Holding B.V. purchased a new stake in Ovintiv during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its holdings in Ovintiv by 3,571.4% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 1,028 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ovintiv Price Performance

Shares of Ovintiv stock traded up $1.33 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $40.70. The stock had a trading volume of 6,040,857 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,377,245. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $10.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.40 and a beta of 1.09. The business has a fifty day moving average of $35.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $39.88. Ovintiv Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $29.80 and a fifty-two week high of $49.57.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $2.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.23 billion. Ovintiv had a return on equity of 17.87% and a net margin of 20.15%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ovintiv Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ovintiv Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. Ovintiv's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on OVV. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Ovintiv from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $55.00 to $57.00 in a report on Monday, March 24th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $59.00 to $53.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Ovintiv in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $56.00 to $45.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $55.00.

Ovintiv Company Profile

Ovintiv Inc, together with its subsidiaries, explores, develops, produces, and markets natural gas, oil, and natural gas liquids in the United States and Canada. The company operates through USA Operations, Canadian Operations, and Market Optimization segments. Its principal assets include Permian in west Texas and Anadarko in west-central Oklahoma; and Montney in northeast British Columbia and northwest Alberta.