Victory Capital Management Inc. Buys 14,846 Shares of Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) by 2.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 543,682 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,846 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned approximately 0.20% of Ovintiv worth $23,879,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ovintiv in the 3rd quarter worth about $440,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in Ovintiv by 2.1% in the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 182,985 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,705,000 after buying an additional 3,840 shares in the last quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Ovintiv by 93.8% during the third quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 219,356 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,435,000 after acquiring an additional 106,147 shares during the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Ovintiv by 7.0% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 41,231 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,961,000 after acquiring an additional 2,687 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio bought a new stake in shares of Ovintiv in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $962,000. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ovintiv Trading Down 3.1 %

NYSE:OVV opened at $50.88 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.45 and a beta of 2.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.60. Ovintiv Inc. has a one year low of $32.07 and a one year high of $55.95. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $51.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $46.71.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $2.35 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. Ovintiv had a return on equity of 19.50% and a net margin of 19.16%. As a group, analysts forecast that Ovintiv Inc. will post 6.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ovintiv Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.36%. Ovintiv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 15.21%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Howard John Mayson sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.56, for a total transaction of $303,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 36,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,862,630.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Ovintiv news, EVP Rachel Maureen Moore sold 9,300 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.65, for a total transaction of $471,045.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 52,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,662,012.05. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Howard John Mayson sold 6,000 shares of Ovintiv stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.56, for a total transaction of $303,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 36,840 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,862,630.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 91,564 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,818. Insiders own 0.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on OVV. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Ovintiv from $62.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. National Bankshares dropped their target price on Ovintiv from $69.00 to $53.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Ovintiv from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Ovintiv from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Ovintiv from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ovintiv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $56.71.

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.