Piper Sandler Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) Stock

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) had its target price upped by Piper Sandler from $53.00 to $54.00 in a research note released on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the energy company’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Devon Energy from $60.00 to $48.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $50.00 price target on shares of Devon Energy in a report on Friday, January 10th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on Devon Energy from $63.00 to $62.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Devon Energy from $54.00 to $46.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Devon Energy from $49.00 to $43.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Devon Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.45.

Devon Energy Stock Performance

NYSE DVN opened at $34.09 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.32, a PEG ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 2.00. Devon Energy has a twelve month low of $30.39 and a twelve month high of $55.09. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $34.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $39.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 5th. The energy company reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.01. Devon Energy had a return on equity of 24.73% and a net margin of 21.71%. The company had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.72 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Devon Energy will post 4.68 EPS for the current year.

Devon Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.58%. Devon Energy’s payout ratio is 16.33%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Devon Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. EnCap Energy Capital Fund XI L.P. bought a new stake in shares of Devon Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $461,857,000. EnCap Partners GP LLC bought a new stake in Devon Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $408,653,000. EnCap Energy Capital Fund X L.P. purchased a new stake in Devon Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $230,928,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Devon Energy by 4,125.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,280,961 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $89,231,000 after buying an additional 2,226,983 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 16.9% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 11,591,168 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $453,446,000 after buying an additional 1,677,652 shares during the last quarter. 69.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Devon Energy

Devon Energy Corporation, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. It operates in Delaware, Eagle Ford, Anadarko, Williston, and Powder River Basins. The company was founded in 1971 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.