HighTower Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Devon Energy Corporation $DVN

HighTower Advisors LLC lowered its position in Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 152,880 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 13,895 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Devon Energy were worth $5,600,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 702.0% in the third quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 802 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 702 shares during the period. Accredited Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 61.6% in the third quarter. Accredited Wealth Management LLC now owns 808 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 308 shares during the period. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Devon Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Devon Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new stake in shares of Devon Energy in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.72% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DVN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Wolfe Research increased their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Devon Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $42.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.85.

Insider Activity at Devon Energy

In other news, SVP Adam M. Vela sold 24,342 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.21, for a total value of $1,149,185.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 130,540 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,162,793.40. This trade represents a 15.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jeffrey L. Ritenour sold 70,029 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.66, for a total transaction of $3,267,553.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 428,452 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,991,570.32. The trade was a 14.05% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.71% of the company’s stock.

Devon Energy Trading Down 1.8%

NYSE DVN opened at $44.31 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.01. Devon Energy Corporation has a one year low of $30.24 and a one year high of $52.71. The firm has a market cap of $27.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.34 and a beta of 0.43.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.02). Devon Energy had a net margin of 13.71% and a return on equity of 15.22%. The business had revenue of $3.81 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.82 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 14.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Devon Energy Corporation will post 4.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a $0.32 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This is a positive change from Devon Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. This represents a $1.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Devon Energy’s payout ratio is 26.74%.

About Devon Energy

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE: DVN) is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the exploration, development, production and marketing of hydrocarbons, including crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and natural gas. Devon operates as an upstream energy company that acquires, evaluates and develops onshore resource plays using a combination of drilling, completion and production optimization techniques.

Core business activities include identifying and developing energy reserves, operating well programs and managing reservoir performance to generate production and cash flow.