Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other research firms have also recently weighed in on DVN. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Devon Energy from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Devon Energy from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Devon Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Devon Energy from $66.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Devon Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.11.

Devon Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DVN opened at $47.95 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $47.09 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.34. Devon Energy has a 52 week low of $31.47 and a 52 week high of $52.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.75 billion, a PE ratio of 11.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.49.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The energy company reported $1.57 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.17. Devon Energy had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 16.67%.The firm had revenue of $7.42 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.84 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 73.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Devon Energy will post 5.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were paid a dividend of $0.32 per share. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. Devon Energy’s payout ratio is currently 30.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Devon Energy news, CEO Clay Gaspar purchased 3,913 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $51.08 per share, for a total transaction of $199,876.04. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 619,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,626,284.16. The trade was a 0.64% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Robert Ferrall Lowe III sold 6,756 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.95, for a total value of $344,218.20. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 72,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,705,084. This trade represents a 8.50% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 4.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Devon Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of DVN. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Devon Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $221,000. Eastern Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 2.6% during the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 71,445 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $3,289,000 after acquiring an additional 1,786 shares during the period. Collective Family Office LLC bought a new stake in shares of Devon Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $315,000. Miller Global Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Devon Energy by 2.5% in the third quarter. Miller Global Investments LLC now owns 26,366 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $1,214,000 after purchasing an additional 654 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional grew its position in shares of Devon Energy by 2.6% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 20,678 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $952,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.72% of the company’s stock.

Devon Energy Company Profile

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE: DVN) is an independent energy company engaged primarily in the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The company operates in the United States and focuses on onshore properties with oil- and liquids-rich resources.

Devon’s operations are concentrated in several major U.S. producing regions, including the Delaware Basin in the Permian Basin, the Eagle Ford, the Anadarko Basin, the Williston Basin and the Powder River Basin.