Yousif Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Yousif Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 10.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 24,125 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 2,940 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $743,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CNQ. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 17.8% during the 1st quarter. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC now owns 205,814 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $6,339,000 after acquiring an additional 31,130 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 10.2% during the first quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 5,165 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 77,253 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,379,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA lifted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 19.3% in the first quarter. Unigestion Holding SA now owns 693,037 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $21,329,000 after buying an additional 112,103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 21.4% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,197 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 1,975 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

NYSE CNQ opened at $33.58 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.17 and a beta of 1.03. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 12-month low of $24.65 and a 12-month high of $37.91. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.46 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.35.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.08. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 16.92% and a return on equity of 20.90%. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. Analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.4227 per share. This represents a $1.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.04%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This is an increase from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Canadian Natural Resources’s payout ratio is presently 67.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on CNQ. Raymond James Financial upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $63.00 target price on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.00.

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).