Merit Financial Group LLC Purchases Shares of 8,232 Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV)

Merit Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 8,232 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $333,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in OVV. Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in Ovintiv by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 196,518 shares of the company's stock worth $7,529,000 after purchasing an additional 2,275 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its position in shares of Ovintiv by 89.1% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 40,902 shares of the company's stock worth $1,917,000 after buying an additional 19,272 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ovintiv by 16.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 270,968 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,527,000 after buying an additional 37,341 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,303,203 shares of the company's stock valued at $241,476,000 after buying an additional 212,535 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in Ovintiv by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 320,759 shares of the company's stock worth $12,288,000 after acquiring an additional 13,536 shares in the last quarter. 83.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ovintiv Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of OVV stock traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $44.90. The company had a trading volume of 2,309,399 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,089,112. Ovintiv Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.90 and a 1-year high of $55.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market cap of $11.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.96 and a beta of 2.63. The company has a 50 day moving average of $42.67 and a 200 day moving average of $42.46.

Ovintiv (NYSE:OVV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The company reported $1.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.09 by $0.76. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.32 billion. Ovintiv had a return on equity of 17.87% and a net margin of 20.15%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Ovintiv Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current year.

Ovintiv Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Ovintiv's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on OVV shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Ovintiv from $48.00 to $42.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. Barclays increased their price target on Ovintiv from $53.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on Ovintiv from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Ovintiv from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Ovintiv from $59.00 to $56.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $56.81.

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.