Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Receives $51.00 Average PT from Analysts

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ have earned an average rating of "Hold" from the four ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $51.00.

CNQ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Desjardins upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd.

Canadian Natural Resources Trading Down 1.8 %

CNQ stock traded down $0.64 during trading on Friday, hitting $34.17. 4,259,723 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,835,575. The company has a 50-day moving average of $34.51 and a 200-day moving average of $35.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.84. Canadian Natural Resources has a 1 year low of $29.45 and a 1 year high of $41.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.22 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 1.50.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.30. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 20.07% and a net margin of 18.45%. The firm had revenue of $7.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.96 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources will post 2.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.388 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. This represents a $1.55 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.54%. Canadian Natural Resources's payout ratio is currently 60.58%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian Natural Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Park Place Capital Corp grew its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 716 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 98.3% in the second quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 710 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 100.0% in the second quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 728 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 91.6% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 868 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 104.7% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 874 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 447 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).