Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) have earned an average rating of “Hold” from the seven research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $94.00.

Several research firms recently issued reports on CNQ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $101.00 to $102.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Desjardins downgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Up 0.2 %

CNQ opened at $76.71 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $72.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a market cap of $82.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.85 and a beta of 1.54. Canadian Natural Resources has a 52 week low of $52.66 and a 52 week high of $82.58.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.13. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 21.74% and a net margin of 20.15%. The firm had revenue of $7.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.73 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Canadian Natural Resources will post 5.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 5th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.774 dividend. This represents a $3.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.72. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 53.25%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian Natural Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 103.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 9,819,333 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $643,348,000 after acquiring an additional 4,989,634 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 24.4% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 21,562,341 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,419,556,000 after purchasing an additional 4,224,598 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 1,606.4% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 2,703,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $177,952,000 after buying an additional 2,544,593 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 43.2% during the 3rd quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 7,640,000 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $494,262,000 after buying an additional 2,305,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCM Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 9,297.9% in the 4th quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 2,192,895 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $143,284,000 after acquiring an additional 2,169,561 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

Canadian Natural Resources Limited acquires, explores for, develops, produces, markets, and sells crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGLs). The company offers light and medium crude oil, primary heavy crude oil, Pelican Lake heavy crude oil, bitumen (thermal oil), and synthetic crude oil (SCO).