Ovintiv Inc. (OVV.TO) was upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at BMO Capital Markets on Monday.

Analyst Phillip Jungwirth raised his price target on shares of the energy company to $57 from $55, following revisions to BMO's commodity forecast.

"Ovintiv's portfolio is more focused now than any time in its history, with core positions in the Midland and Montney," Jungworth said in a note to clients. "Both assets generate attractive returns and operational performance has been strong."

"Ovintiv has line of sight on continued deleveraging, reaching $4.6 Billion year-end 2025 net debt (<1.0x), supporting a resumption of buybacks in 2Q," the analyst said.

"While valuation has historically been discounted, we think a greater case for re-rating now exists."

(MT Newswires covers equity, commodity and economic research from major banks and research firms in North America, Asia and Europe. Research providers may contact us here: https://www.mtnewswires.com/contact-us)