California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Hold

Key Points

• Zacks Research downgraded California Resources from strong-buy to hold, even though the broader analyst community still leans positive on the stock.
• Despite the downgrade, the consensus rating remains Moderate Buy with an average target price of $72.00; recent firms including Citigroup, UBS, and Wells Fargo maintained or raised bullish views.
• The company’s latest earnings showed EPS of $0.88, matching estimates, but revenue came in far below expectations at $119 million versus a $947.5 million consensus, with revenue down 87% year over year.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Zacks Research from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on CRC. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on California Resources from $72.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of California Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Citigroup raised shares of California Resources from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $74.00 to $78.00 in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. UBS Group set a $78.00 price objective on shares of California Resources and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of California Resources from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, California Resources currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $72.00.

California Resources Stock Down 1.3%

California Resources stock opened at $61.25 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $5.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -11.78 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company's 50-day moving average price is $64.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.60. California Resources has a 52 week low of $41.88 and a 52 week high of $71.98.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88. California Resources had a positive return on equity of 10.12% and a negative net margin of 16.10%.The firm had revenue of $119.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $947.50 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.07 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 87.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that California Resources will post 5.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Christopher D. Gould sold 24,347 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.21, for a total value of $1,514,626.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 131,537 shares in the company, valued at $8,182,916.77. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Omar Hayat sold 23,000 shares of California Resources stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.87, for a total value of $1,515,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 82,236 shares in the company, valued at $5,416,885.32. This represents a 21.86% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 72,283 shares of company stock valued at $4,636,646. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Resources

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in California Resources by 57.1% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 585,709 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $40,543,000 after purchasing an additional 212,827 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Resources by 12.8% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 480,413 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $33,254,000 after purchasing an additional 54,703 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Resources by 13.6% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $155,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of California Resources by 25.4% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 76,343 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $5,284,000 after buying an additional 15,486 shares during the period. Finally, Readystate Asset Management LP purchased a new position in shares of California Resources during the first quarter valued at $1,663,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.79% of the company's stock.

About California Resources

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.

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