Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Receives $63.00 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the six analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $63.00.

CNQ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank raised Canadian Natural Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Evercore ISI raised Canadian Natural Resources from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Raymond James Financial raised Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $63.00 price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday, March 27th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian Natural Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNQ. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 595.2% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 6,987 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $216,000 after buying an additional 5,982 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,468,492 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $137,889,000 after buying an additional 282,696 shares during the last quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 181,893 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,615,000 after buying an additional 6,616 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the fourth quarter valued at about $214,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC raised its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 49.6% in the fourth quarter. Hara Capital LLC now owns 22,934 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $708,000 after buying an additional 7,604 shares during the last quarter. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

CNQ stock opened at $33.42 on Wednesday. Canadian Natural Resources has a twelve month low of $24.65 and a twelve month high of $37.91. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $30.34. The firm has a market cap of $69.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.11 and a beta of 1.03.

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

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.4227 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.06%. This is an increase from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.06%.

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).