Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $39.19 and last traded at $38.9350, with a volume of 1038076 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $37.98.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DVN has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $42.00 price objective on shares of Devon Energy in a research note on Wednesday, December 31st. Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Devon Energy from $43.00 to $37.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 17th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Devon Energy from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $46.00 price target on shares of Devon Energy and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $44.31.

Devon Energy Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.27 billion, a PE ratio of 9.13, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.60. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $36.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.77.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $0.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.10 billion. Devon Energy had a return on equity of 18.14% and a net margin of 15.56%.During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Devon Energy Corporation will post 4.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. Devon Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 22.59%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Devon Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in DVN. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. grew its holdings in Devon Energy by 431.6% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 368,161 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $13,486,000 after acquiring an additional 298,908 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 99.3% in the fourth quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,156 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,141,000 after purchasing an additional 15,527 shares during the last quarter. Brookwood Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in Devon Energy by 2,449.1% during the 4th quarter. Brookwood Investment Group LLC now owns 148,765 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $5,449,000 after purchasing an additional 142,929 shares during the period. Foundation Resource Management Inc. raised its position in Devon Energy by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Foundation Resource Management Inc. now owns 127,827 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $4,682,000 after purchasing an additional 6,192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in Devon Energy by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 11,839 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $434,000 after buying an additional 758 shares during the period. 69.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Devon Energy

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE: DVN) is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the exploration, development, production and marketing of hydrocarbons, including crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and natural gas. Devon operates as an upstream energy company that acquires, evaluates and develops onshore resource plays using a combination of drilling, completion and production optimization techniques.

Core business activities include identifying and developing energy reserves, operating well programs and managing reservoir performance to generate production and cash flow.