Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Ovintiv Inc. $OVV

Principal Financial Group Inc. lessened its holdings in Ovintiv Inc. (NYSE:OVV) by 2.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 618,390 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,210 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.24% of Ovintiv worth $24,971,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. raised its position in Ovintiv by 143.8% in the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 3,739,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $142,278,000 after purchasing an additional 2,205,233 shares during the period. Evergreen Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ovintiv in the third quarter valued at about $60,866,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Ovintiv in the second quarter valued at about $41,701,000. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ovintiv by 1,599.3% during the 2nd quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 651,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,772,000 after buying an additional 612,725 shares during the period. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Ovintiv by 116.3% during the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 927,525 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,292,000 after acquiring an additional 498,661 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. National Bankshares increased their price objective on shares of Ovintiv from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Ovintiv from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $54.00 price target on shares of Ovintiv in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Stephens upgraded shares of Ovintiv to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Ovintiv in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $51.06.

Ovintiv Stock Performance

Shares of Ovintiv stock opened at $46.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.45. Ovintiv Inc. has a 1 year low of $29.80 and a 1 year high of $46.73. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $39.99. The firm has a market cap of $11.78 billion, a PE ratio of 51.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, COO Gregory Dean Givens sold 50,000 shares of Ovintiv stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.33, for a total value of $2,016,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 105,867 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,269,616.11. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Ovintiv Profile

Ovintiv Inc is a North American energy company focused on the exploration, development and production of oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Formerly known as Encana Corporation, the company rebranded as Ovintiv in January 2020 and established its headquarters in Denver, Colorado. Ovintiv’s upstream portfolio spans multiple unconventional resource plays, reflecting a strategy centered on high-return projects and disciplined capital allocation.

The company’s core business activities include the acquisition and development of acreage in major shale basins across the United States and Canada.