Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. cut its holdings in Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) by 25.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 659,141 shares of the company’s stock after selling 223,498 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.25% of Ovintiv worth $25,252,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Raymond James & Associates lifted its stake in shares of Ovintiv by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 196,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,529,000 after purchasing an additional 2,275 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP raised its holdings in Ovintiv by 89.1% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 40,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,917,000 after buying an additional 19,272 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in Ovintiv by 16.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 270,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,527,000 after buying an additional 37,341 shares during the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ovintiv by 3.5% during the third quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,303,203 shares of the company’s stock worth $241,476,000 after buying an additional 212,535 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in shares of Ovintiv by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 320,759 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,288,000 after acquiring an additional 13,536 shares during the period. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ovintiv Stock Up 1.7 %

Ovintiv stock opened at $38.76 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $10.09 billion, a PE ratio of 5.14 and a beta of 2.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $41.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $43.02. Ovintiv Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.90 and a 1-year high of $55.95.

Ovintiv Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Ovintiv’s payout ratio is 15.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on OVV. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Ovintiv from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Ovintiv from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Ovintiv from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Ovintiv from $48.00 to $42.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $60.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.59.

Ovintiv Company Profile

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.