Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Sells 33,608 Shares of Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund trimmed its stake in Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) by 42.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 44,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 33,608 shares during the quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Ovintiv were worth $1,963,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Ovintiv by 10.7% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 528,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,157,000 after purchasing an additional 51,261 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank grew its stake in Ovintiv by 15.5% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 761,303 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,215,000 after purchasing an additional 101,978 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Ovintiv by 10.1% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 27,029,983 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,285,816,000 after purchasing an additional 2,484,554 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in Ovintiv by 2.5% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 1,124,654 shares of the company’s stock valued at $53,500,000 after purchasing an additional 27,381 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comerica Bank bought a new position in Ovintiv in the third quarter valued at approximately $18,097,000. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Ovintiv

In related news, EVP Renee Ellen Zemljak sold 76,264 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.96, for a total transaction of $3,886,413.44. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,206,325.12. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Ovintiv news, Director Howard John Mayson sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.56, for a total value of $303,360.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 36,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,862,630.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Renee Ellen Zemljak sold 76,264 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.96, for a total value of $3,886,413.44. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 23,672 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,206,325.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 91,564 shares of company stock valued at $4,660,818. Corporate insiders own 1.70% of the company’s stock.

Ovintiv Price Performance

Ovintiv stock opened at $53.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.60. Ovintiv Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.07 and a 52 week high of $55.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.74 and a beta of 2.65. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $50.82 and a 200-day moving average of $46.62.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $2.35 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.41. Ovintiv had a return on equity of 19.50% and a net margin of 19.16%. The company had revenue of $3.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.75 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ovintiv Inc. will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ovintiv Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. Ovintiv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.21%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OVV has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Ovintiv from $59.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Ovintiv from $47.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Ovintiv from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $58.00 target price on shares of Ovintiv in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on Ovintiv from $52.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock 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.