California Public Employees Retirement System Sells 125,531 Shares of Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN)

California Public Employees Retirement System lessened its stake in shares of Devon Energy Co. (NYSE:DVN) by 11.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 986,723 shares of the energy company’s stock after selling 125,531 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Devon Energy were worth $32,295,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Devon Energy by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 80,682,170 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $2,640,727,000 after purchasing an additional 5,465,692 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Devon Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $154,170,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 90.8% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,724,407 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $89,170,000 after buying an additional 1,296,590 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of Devon Energy by 1,015.7% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 812,027 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $26,577,000 after buying an additional 739,247 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Devon Energy by 90.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 1,363,090 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $58,435,000 after buying an additional 646,045 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.72% of the company’s stock.

Devon Energy Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE DVN opened at $37.92 on Thursday. Devon Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $30.39 and a 52-week high of $55.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.04. The business has a fifty day moving average of $35.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.82. The stock has a market cap of $24.61 billion, a PE ratio of 8.32, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.91.

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

Devon Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Devon Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. Devon Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 21.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. StockNews.com raised Devon Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Williams Trading set a $50.00 target price on Devon Energy in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley set a $47.00 price target on Devon Energy and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Devon Energy from $51.00 to $47.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Devon Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $48.29.

Devon Energy Company 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.