Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The oil and gas producer reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.08, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $6.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.81 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 19.67% and a net margin of 19.00%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE:CNQ traded up $0.12 on Friday, hitting $31.61. 8,389,408 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,549,901. The company has a market cap of $65.92 billion, a PE ratio of 11.21 and a beta of 0.96. Canadian Natural Resources has a 1 year low of $24.65 and a 1 year high of $34.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $31.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $31.22.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.5875 per share. This is a boost from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $2.35 annualized dividend and a yield of 7.4%. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. National Bankshares reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Canadian Natural Resources to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 47.3% in the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,644 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $51,000 after buying an additional 528 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 61,892 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,943,000 after acquiring an additional 734 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 5.8% in the third quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 17,085 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 935 shares during the last quarter. Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 2.6% in the second quarter. Ewing Morris & Co. Investment Partners Ltd. now owns 39,122 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,244,000 after acquiring an additional 994 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Snowden Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 2.8% during the second quarter. Snowden Capital Advisors LLC now owns 60,559 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,927,000 after acquiring an additional 1,621 shares in the last quarter. 74.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Canadian Natural Resources

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).