Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 76,583 Shares of Ovintiv Inc. $OVV

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its holdings in Ovintiv Inc. by 28.7%, selling 76,583 shares, resulting in ownership of 189,803 shares valued at approximately $8.12 million.
• Analysts have mixed views on Ovintiv, with target prices ranging from $48 to $58, and an average rating of "Buy" with a consensus target price of $53.33.
• Ovintiv has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.30 per share, representing a yield of 3.1%, with a payout ratio of 53.10% and ex-dividend date set for September 15th.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV - Free Report) by 28.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 189,803 shares of the company's stock after selling 76,583 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.07% of Ovintiv worth $8,123,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in OVV. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Ovintiv by 383.8% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 9,258,570 shares of the company's stock valued at $396,267,000 after buying an additional 7,344,796 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Ovintiv by 1,577.4% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,458,881 shares of the company's stock valued at $99,587,000 after acquiring an additional 2,312,292 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Ovintiv by 243.6% in the 4th quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,564,698 shares of the company's stock valued at $103,870,000 after acquiring an additional 1,818,337 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 69.7% during the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,283,743 shares of the company's stock valued at $132,992,000 after acquiring an additional 1,348,221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Webs Creek Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Ovintiv during the 4th quarter worth $54,086,000. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on OVV shares. TD Cowen upgraded Ovintiv to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Ovintiv from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Ovintiv from $46.00 to $41.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 16th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $48.00 to $51.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Citigroup set a $54.00 price target on shares of Ovintiv and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ovintiv has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $53.07.

Ovintiv Trading Up 4.2%

Ovintiv stock traded up $1.6450 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $40.8850. 3,310,127 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,258,152. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a PEG ratio of 4.89 and a beta of 1.10. Ovintiv Inc. has a 12 month low of $29.80 and a 12 month high of $47.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $40.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.03.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The company reported $1.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.04 by ($0.02). Ovintiv had a return on equity of 14.24% and a net margin of 6.46%.The firm had revenue of $1.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.92 billion. Analysts forecast that Ovintiv Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

Ovintiv Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Ovintiv's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.10%.

About Ovintiv

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.