Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Sets New 52-Week Low - Should You Sell?

Cenovus Energy Inc. (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE's share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $10.23 and last traded at $12.02, with a volume of 22924487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.58.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on CVE. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Cenovus Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. National Bank Financial lowered Cenovus Energy from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank upgraded Cenovus Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. StockNews.com downgraded Cenovus Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, December 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Cenovus Energy in a report on Friday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $29.00.

Cenovus Energy Trading Up 0.1 %

The company has a market capitalization of $21.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.57 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $15.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.59.

Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE - Get Free Report) TSE: CVE last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The oil and gas company reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.27). Cenovus Energy had a net margin of 5.82% and a return on equity of 10.73%. The company had revenue of $8.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.08 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Cenovus Energy Inc. will post 1.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Cenovus Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.1269 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $0.51 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.39%. Cenovus Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.50%.

Institutional Trading of Cenovus Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Cenovus Energy by 104.9% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,662 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 851 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cenovus Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Cenovus Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $67,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Cenovus Energy by 54.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 4,742 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $72,000 after buying an additional 1,677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis bought a new stake in Cenovus Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $98,000. 51.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Cenovus Energy Company Profile

Cenovus Energy Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, produces, refines, transports, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and refined petroleum products in Canada and internationally. The company operates through Oil Sands, Conventional, Offshore, Canadian Refining, and U.S. Refining segments.