Falling debt is good news for their investors

Article Excerpt

Even though oil and gas prices are down about a third from their recent peaks, they remain elevated compared to the past few years. Those high prices are letting Cenovus and Ovintiv pay down debt, which cuts their risk. Both are also increasing the cash they send to shareholders. CENOVUS ENERGY INC. $24 is a buy. The company (Toronto symbol CVE; Conservative Growth Portfolio, Resources sector; Shares outstanding: 1.9 billion; Market cap: $45.6 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 0.8; Dividend yield 1.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; www.cenovus.com) is now Canada’s third-largest producer of oil and natural gas following its all-stock acquisition of rival oil producer Husky Energy Inc. (Toronto symbol HSE) on January 1, 2021. It also operates refineries in Canada and the U.S. Thanks to its rising production and higher crude prices, Cenovus cut its net debt (total debt less cash held) by 21.4%, from $9.59 billion at the end of 2021 to $7.54 billion as of June 30, 2022. The company will probably hit its target…