California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Cut to Strong Sell at Zacks Research

Zacks Research cut shares of California Resources (NYSE:CRC) from a hold rating to a strong sell rating in a report published on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

CRC has been the topic of several other reports. Mizuho boosted their price target on California Resources from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of California Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of California Resources from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of California Resources from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of California Resources from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.09.

California Resources Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:CRC opened at $52.80 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $56.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $57.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.69 billion, a PE ratio of -10.15 and a beta of 0.92. California Resources has a 12 month low of $43.24 and a 12 month high of $71.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.88. California Resources had a positive return on equity of 10.12% and a negative net margin of 16.10%.The company had revenue of $119.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $947.50 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.07 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 87.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that California Resources will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th were issued a $0.405 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 29th. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently -31.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other California Resources news, EVP Jay A. Bys sold 11,907 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $642,978.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 159,424 shares in the company, valued at $8,608,896. This trade represents a 6.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On California Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of California Resources by 56.7% during the second quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,086 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 755 shares in the last quarter. Burns Matteson Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in California Resources in the second quarter valued at $421,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in California Resources by 2.4% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 17,706 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $929,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd bought a new position in California Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,022,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its stake in California Resources by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 212,297 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $11,224,000 after acquiring an additional 1,645 shares during the last quarter. 97.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

California Resources Company Profile

California Resources Corporation (NYSE: CRC) is an independent exploration and production company focused exclusively on developing oil and natural gas assets in California. Headquartered in Newport Beach, the company engages in hydraulic fracturing, well completions, reservoir management and enhanced recovery operations to produce crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids.

CRC’s operations are concentrated in three core regions: the Los Angeles Basin, the Ventura Basin and the San Joaquin Basin.