Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) Short Interest Update

Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,030,000 shares, a growth of 41.1% from the February 28th total of 7,110,000 shares. Currently, 3.9% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 3,220,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.1 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on OVV shares. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Ovintiv from $63.00 to $60.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $59.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Bank of America raised shares of Ovintiv from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $55.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Ovintiv from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Ovintiv to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ovintiv presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $57.17.

Ovintiv Price Performance

OVV stock traded down $1.08 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $42.24. 3,026,647 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,066,342. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $42.59 and a 200 day simple moving average of $41.93. Ovintiv has a one year low of $36.62 and a one year high of $55.95. The company has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 2.55.

Ovintiv Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. Ovintiv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ovintiv

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 3,180.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 636 shares during the last quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC acquired a new position in shares of Ovintiv in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its position in shares of Ovintiv by 100.8% in the fourth quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 717 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 360 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 71.3% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 805 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 335 shares during the period. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Ovintiv in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.81% of the company’s stock.

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.