Franklin Resources Inc. Sells 281,326 Shares of Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN)

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN) by 20.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,081,764 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 281,326 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.16% of Devon Energy worth $35,405,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DVN. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG grew its position in shares of Devon Energy by 6.2% during the 4th quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG now owns 21,900 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $717,000 after purchasing an additional 1,286 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial LLC increased its stake in Devon Energy by 168.4% in the 4th quarter. Summit Financial LLC now owns 32,159 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,053,000 after acquiring an additional 20,176 shares during the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its position in shares of Devon Energy by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 929,222 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $30,413,000 after acquiring an additional 7,494 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 923.6% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 57,916 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $1,896,000 after purchasing an additional 52,258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Devon Energy by 42.4% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 654,943 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $21,436,000 after purchasing an additional 195,103 shares during the last quarter. 69.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on DVN. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Devon Energy from $46.00 to $43.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $44.00 price target on shares of Devon Energy in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Devon Energy from $48.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Williams Trading set a $50.00 target price on Devon Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Cowen cut shares of Devon Energy to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $46.00 to $45.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Devon Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $48.17.

Devon Energy Price Performance

DVN opened at $29.30 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $19.01 billion, a PE ratio of 6.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $35.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.70. Devon Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $29.06 and a 1 year high of $55.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 1.01.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The energy company reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.16. Devon Energy had a net margin of 18.14% and a return on equity of 22.52%. The firm had revenue of $4.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.25 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Devon Energy Co. will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Devon Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.28%. Devon Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.05%.

Devon Energy Profile

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.