Unison Advisors LLC Takes Position in Ovintiv Inc. $OVV

Key Points

• Unison Advisors LLC opened a new position in Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV), buying 17,284 shares in Q4 valued at about $677,000, and institutional investors now own 83.81% of the company.
• Company insiders reduced holdings recently: EVP Meghan Nicole Eilers sold 11,582 shares and Director Howard John Mayson sold 5,000 shares, leaving insiders with 1.70% ownership.
• Ovintiv beat Q4 expectations with $1.39 EPS vs. $0.98 expected, announced a $0.30 quarterly dividend (annualized yield ~2.0%), and carries a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target near $59.16.

Unison Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 17,284 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $677,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 263.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,949,637 shares of the company's stock valued at $199,866,000 after purchasing an additional 3,589,030 shares in the last quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 143.8% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,739,237 shares of the company's stock valued at $142,278,000 after buying an additional 2,205,233 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 25.8% during the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,389,865 shares of the company's stock valued at $379,165,000 after buying an additional 1,927,193 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Ovintiv during the third quarter valued at $60,866,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new position in Ovintiv during the second quarter valued at $41,701,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.81% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Meghan Nicole Eilers sold 11,582 shares of Ovintiv stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.78, for a total value of $634,461.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 54,092 shares in the company, valued at $2,963,159.76. This trade represents a 17.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Howard John Mayson sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.39, for a total transaction of $261,950.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 45,780 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,398,414.20. This represents a 9.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Ovintiv Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of OVV stock opened at $59.13 on Monday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $51.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.52. Ovintiv Inc. has a twelve month low of $29.80 and a twelve month high of $62.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $16.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.22, a PEG ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.59.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.41. Ovintiv had a return on equity of 12.00% and a net margin of 13.94%.The firm had revenue of $1.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.23) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Ovintiv Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

Ovintiv Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Ovintiv's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OVV has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Ovintiv in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $58.00 price objective for the company. TD Cowen upped their target price on Ovintiv from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $49.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Ovintiv in a report on Thursday, February 19th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on shares of Ovintiv from $42.00 to $50.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $59.16.

Ovintiv Profile

Ovintiv Inc is a North American energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Formerly known as Encana Corporation, the company rebranded as Ovintiv in January 2020 and established its headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Ovintiv's upstream portfolio spans multiple unconventional resource plays, reflecting a strategy centered on high-return projects and disciplined capital allocation.

The company's core business activities include the acquisition and development of acreage in major shale basins across the United States and Canada.

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