Short Interest in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Increases By 280.5%

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) was the target of a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 51,596,398 shares, an increase of 280.5% from the May 14th total of 13,559,429 shares. Approximately 2.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 6,941,931 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.4 days.

Canadian Natural Resources Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE:CNQ traded down $0.12 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $45.32. 6,838,716 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,652,807. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.53 and a beta of 0.45. Canadian Natural Resources has a 52 week low of $29.30 and a 52 week high of $51.34. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $46.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 22.04% and a return on equity of 17.49%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be given a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNQ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research cut shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets cut shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $37.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Canadian Natural Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE: CNQ) is a Calgary-based independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Established in the early 1970s and publicly listed in Canada and the United States, the company is principally engaged in the exploration, development, production, and marketing of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its asset base spans conventional and unconventional reservoirs and includes oil sands mining and in-situ thermal projects, midstream processing and upgrading capacity, and related field operations.

The company’s operations are concentrated in Western Canada, where it develops heavy crude, bitumen from oil sands and conventional light crude and natural gas resources.