Ovintiv attracts an activist

Article Excerpt

OVINTIV INC., $23.30, is a buy. The energy producer (Toronto symbol OVV; Shares outstanding: 259.9 million; Market cap: $5.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Dividend yield: 2.1%) has drawn the attention of activist investor Kimmeridge Energy Management Co. Kimmeridge, which owns about 2.4% of Ovintiv, wants it to undertake several actions to improve shareholder value. Those include better aligning executive compensation with the stock price, selling non-core assets and shifting spending to the Permian Basin. Kimmeridge will also likely seek to replace several of the directors on Ovintiv’s board with its own nominees. Whether or not Ovintiv will make any changes based on Kimmeridge’s involvement is uncertain at this point. But either way, the activist’s involvement does serve to highlight Ovintiv’s investment appeal. Ovintiv Inc. is a buy. buy…