Encana Corporation (ECA) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results

Encana Corporation (NYSE:ECA) (TSE:ECA) announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 21st. The oil and gas company reported $0.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.03 by $0.15, Morningstar.com reports. Encana Corporation had a net margin of 19.09% and a return on equity of 6.25%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $773.19 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 EPS.

Shares of Encana Corporation (NYSE:ECA) opened at 9.06 on Friday. Encana Corporation has a 12-month low of $8.01 and a 12-month high of $13.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.80 and a beta of 2.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $9.47 and its 200-day moving average is $10.54.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.015 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 14th. This represents a $0.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. Encana Corporation’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.98%.

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ECA. Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new position in Encana Corporation during the second quarter worth approximately $102,000. Equity Investment Corp Acquisition Inc boosted its position in Encana Corporation by 10.7% in the first quarter. Equity Investment Corp Acquisition Inc now owns 12,330 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $144,000 after buying an additional 1,195 shares during the last quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Encana Corporation during the second quarter worth approximately $109,000. Atria Investments LLC purchased a new position in Encana Corporation during the second quarter worth approximately $113,000. Finally, First Allied Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in Encana Corporation by 13.3% in the second quarter. First Allied Advisory Services Inc. now owns 13,351 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 1,567 shares during the last quarter. 73.08% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Group LLC set a $14.00 target price on shares of Encana Corporation and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 17th. Barclays PLC reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $12.00 target price (down from $15.00) on shares of Encana Corporation in a report on Saturday, April 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Encana Corporation in a report on Monday, May 29th. Desjardins set a $13.00 target price on shares of Encana Corporation and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 20th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Encana Corporation from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. The company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $13.32.

Encana Corporation Company Profile

Encana Corporation is an energy producer that is focused on developing its multi-basin portfolio of natural gas, oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) producing plays. The Company’s operations also include the marketing of natural gas, oil and NGLs. All of its reserves and production are located in North America.