California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) Shares Sold by BlackRock Inc.

BlackRock Inc. reduced its stake in California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC – Get Rating) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,346,765 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 238,951 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. owned approximately 10.00% of California Resources worth $282,335,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of California Resources by 39.2% during the third quarter. BlueCrest Capital Management Ltd now owns 131,198 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,042,000 after acquiring an additional 36,950 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of California Resources by 3.0% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 154,552 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,940,000 after acquiring an additional 4,438 shares in the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of California Resources during the third quarter valued at about $369,000. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of California Resources by 9.1% during the third quarter. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC now owns 31,344 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,205,000 after acquiring an additional 2,622 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PDT Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of California Resources by 41.2% during the third quarter. PDT Partners LLC now owns 17,215 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $662,000 after acquiring an additional 5,019 shares in the last quarter.

California Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CRC opened at $40.37 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.90, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $42.74 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.49. California Resources Co. has a 52-week low of $35.95 and a 52-week high of $51.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.88 and a beta of 1.11.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 24th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by ($0.53). California Resources had a return on equity of 23.03% and a net margin of 19.36%. The business had revenue of $682.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $639.65 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that California Resources Co. will post 6.02 earnings per share for the current year.

California Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 6th will be issued a $0.2825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.13 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.80%. This is a boost from California Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.28. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.45%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on CRC. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of California Resources in a research note on Saturday, February 4th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of California Resources from $62.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 15th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of California Resources from $59.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Friday. Bank of America raised shares of California Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $51.00 to $60.00 in a research report on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of California Resources from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $56.86.

California Resources Profile

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California Resources Corporation operates as an independent oil and natural gas company. The company explores for, produces, gathers, processes, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids for marketers, California refineries, and other purchasers that have access to transportation and storage facilities.