As noted earlier, Oppenheimer downgraded Devon Energy to Perform from Outperform. The firm expects the company's 2016 results to be weaker than its 2015 results, which the firm says were boosted by hedging. Oppenheimer thinks that the company could face significant cash flow shortfalls.

Piper Sandler analyst Mark Lear raised the firm's price target on Devon Energy to $60 from $59 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares as part of a Q1 preview for the exploration and production group. Energy has been hot, almost too hot, as $90 crude potentially cools the pace of consolidation and investors looking for ways to play the data center and power demand theme turn to gas equities, the analyst tells investors in a research note. The firm adjusted oil and gas price assumptions, expecting crude pricing to remain strong through Q3 and gas pricing pressure to persist through the balance of fiscal 2024.