Devon Energy Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:DVN)

Devon Energy Corporation (NYSE:DVN) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors acquired 38,440 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 79% compared to the typical volume of 21,490 call options.

Devon Energy Trading Up 3.6%

Devon Energy stock traded up $1.29 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $37.01. The company had a trading volume of 6,992,397 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,903,835. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.71, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.60. Devon Energy has a 12-month low of $25.89 and a 12-month high of $38.88. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $36.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $34.56.

Devon Energy (NYSE:DVN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The energy company reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $0.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.10 billion. Devon Energy had a net margin of 15.56% and a return on equity of 18.14%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Devon Energy will post 4.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Devon Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Devon Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on DVN shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Devon Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Devon Energy from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Roth Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on shares of Devon Energy in a research report on Wednesday, December 31st. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of Devon Energy from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Devon Energy from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Devon Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.62.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Devon Energy

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of DVN. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Devon Energy by 1.2% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,595,683 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $589,399,000 after purchasing an additional 218,034 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 5.0% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,845,958 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $415,319,000 after purchasing an additional 560,652 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Devon Energy by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 9,353,062 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $327,938,000 after buying an additional 552,068 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Devon Energy by 29.3% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 8,223,219 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $288,306,000 after acquiring an additional 1,862,720 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Devon Energy by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,784,270 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $152,188,000 after purchasing an additional 77,433 shares during the period. 69.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Devon Energy Company Profile

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.