Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) Upgraded to "Strong-Buy" at Zacks Research

Key Points

• Zacks Research upgraded Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) from hold to strong-buy, adding to a generally positive analyst backdrop for the stock.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but constructive overall: CNQ now has one Strong Buy, six Buy, and four Hold ratings, with an average Moderate Buy rating and a $57.00 average price target.
• The company recently posted better-than-expected quarterly results, earning $0.85 EPS versus the $0.74 estimate and generating $7.72 billion in revenue, while the stock was trading up about 2% at $45.81.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

CNQ has been the topic of several other reports. Desjardins raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Scotiabank raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Canadian Natural Resources presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of NYSE CNQ opened at $45.81 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Canadian Natural Resources has a 12 month low of $29.30 and a 12 month high of $51.34. The company has a market cap of $95.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.68 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $44.00 and a 200-day simple moving average of $43.09.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.11. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 22.04%.The firm had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources will post 4.2 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 6,758,445 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $228,729,000 after buying an additional 315,460 shares during the period. Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 1st quarter worth $6,198,000. Novem Group bought a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,270,000. WCM Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 22.4% during the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 5,122,209 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $252,883,000 after purchasing an additional 938,210 shares during the period. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 78,161 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $2,646,000 after buying an additional 29,249 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.03% of the company's stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

Canadian Natural Resources Limited NYSE: CNQ is a Calgary-based independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Established in the early 1970s and publicly listed in Canada and the United States, the company is principally engaged in the exploration, development, production, and marketing of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its asset base spans conventional and unconventional reservoirs and includes oil sands mining and in-situ thermal projects, midstream processing and upgrading capacity, and related field operations.

The company's operations are concentrated in Western Canada, where it develops heavy crude, bitumen from oil sands and conventional light crude and natural gas resources.

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