California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Shares Down 9.9% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Shares fell ~9.9% on Wednesday to $63.17 from a prior close of $70.13, with ~394,127 shares traded — about 58% below the stock's average daily volume.
• The company reported Q results with EPS of $0.88 meeting estimates, but revenue plunged 87% year-over-year to $119.0 million versus analysts' $947.5 million expectation.
• Analysts carry a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with an average target of $71.20, and California Resources announced a quarterly dividend of $0.405 (annualized $1.62) for a ~2.6% yield.

California Resources Corporation (NYSE:CRC - Get Free Report) was down 9.9% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $62.76 and last traded at $63.1740. Approximately 394,127 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average daily volume of 928,404 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.13.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on CRC shares. Zacks Research raised shares of California Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of California Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, April 6th. Citigroup raised their target price on California Resources from $67.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Barclays raised their target price on California Resources from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of California Resources in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $71.20.

California Resources Trading Down 12.1%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a market cap of $5.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.11 and a beta of 0.96. The business's fifty day moving average is $64.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $54.12.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88. The business had revenue of $119.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $947.50 million. California Resources had a net margin of 9.89% and a return on equity of 10.23%. California Resources's revenue for the quarter was down 87.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.07 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that California Resources Corporation will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 18th. Investors of record on Friday, May 29th will be given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. California Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.71%.

Insider Transactions at California Resources

In other California Resources news, COO Omar Hayat sold 23,000 shares of California Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.87, for a total transaction of $1,515,010.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 82,236 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,416,885.32. The trade was a 21.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark Allen Mcfarland sold 16,372 shares of California Resources stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.83, for a total transaction of $1,061,396.76. Following the sale, the director directly owned 76,265 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,944,259.95. This represents a 17.67% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 72,283 shares of company stock valued at $4,636,646 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of California Resources

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CRC. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of California Resources by 200.7% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,344,493 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $104,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,564,866 shares during the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of California Resources by 1,263.4% in the 4th quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 1,590,707 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $71,121,000 after buying an additional 1,474,037 shares during the period. Sourcerock Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of California Resources by 63.8% in the 2nd quarter. Sourcerock Group LLC now owns 2,000,649 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $91,370,000 after buying an additional 779,280 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of California Resources by 155.8% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,062,553 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $48,527,000 after buying an additional 647,190 shares during the period. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of California Resources by 17.8% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,181,806 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $186,968,000 after buying an additional 632,170 shares during the period. 97.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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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