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Cenovus Energy's Pelican Lake facility.

Some analysts and investors are getting giddy over beaten-up energy stocks, now that oil has come off its highs for the year. The latest: Greg Pardy, an analyst at RBC Dominion Securities, upgraded his recommendation on Cenovus Energy Inc. - the oil producer recently hived off natural gas producer Encana Corp. - to "outperform" from "sector perform" after a 15 per cent pullback in the price. He maintained a 12-month price target of $42.

"Although Cenovus' premium valuation has certainly given us pause in the past, we continue to like its long-term oil sands growth profile and admire its best-in-class in-situ assets at Foster Creek and Christina Lake," Mr. Pardy said in a note.

Since the end of April, the price of crude oil has been in sharp decline, falling 15.6 per cent. It hovered at around $96 (U.S.) a barrel on Tuesday in late-morning trading.

Canadian energy stocks within the S&P/TSX composite index have actually outperformed the commodity: They have tumbled a total of 11.8 per cent, but began their descent earlier - at the start of March. Suncor Energy Inc. has fallen 17.3 per cent since then. And Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. has fallen 12.3 per cent since early April.

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