Canadian Natural Resources (TSE:CNQ) Price Target Raised to C$72.00

Key Points

• TD raised CNQ's price target from C$64.00 to C$72.00 and maintained a "buy" rating, implying roughly a 13.35% upside; other brokers have also lifted targets (RBC to C$80.00), signaling rising analyst optimism.
• Consensus view is "Moderate Buy" with an average analyst price target of C$63.60 and an even split of six Buy and six Hold ratings.
• Stock and fundamentals: CNQ traded at C$63.52 with a C$132.56 billion market cap and a P/E of 12.31, while insiders sold 74,306 shares in the last three months and still own 4.26% of the company.

Canadian Natural Resources (TSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) NYSE: CNQ had its price objective upped by stock analysts at TD from C$64.00 to C$72.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday,BayStreet.CA reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. TD's price target indicates a potential upside of 13.35% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on CNQ. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce lifted their target price on Canadian Natural Resources from C$52.00 to C$54.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Canadian Natural Resources from C$65.00 to C$80.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Canadian Natural Resources from C$48.00 to C$59.00 in a research note on Monday, March 16th. TD Securities lifted their price target on Canadian Natural Resources from C$51.00 to C$64.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered Canadian Natural Resources from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from C$55.00 to C$65.00 in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of C$63.60.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

CNQ stock traded up C$0.61 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting C$63.52. 3,241,748 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 16,742,088. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 44.46. The firm has a market capitalization of C$132.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of C$62.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of C$51.60. Canadian Natural Resources has a 12 month low of C$38.58 and a 12 month high of C$70.99.

Canadian Natural Resources (TSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) NYSE: CNQ last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 5th. The company reported C$0.82 EPS for the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 25.98% and a net margin of 26.06%.The company had revenue of C$9.61 billion for the quarter. On average, analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources will post 3.833989 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Canadian Natural Resources

In other news, insider Erin Louise Lunn sold 2,252 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$49.68, for a total transaction of C$111,879.36. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 51,142 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$2,540,734.56. This represents a 4.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Also, insider Ronald Keith Laing sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of C$49.83, for a total value of C$996,600.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,049 shares of the company's stock, valued at C$102,101.67. This trade represents a 90.71% decrease in their position. Insiders sold 74,306 shares of company stock valued at $4,159,750 over the last three months. 4.26% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

Canadian Natural Resources is one of the largest oil and natural gas producers in western Canada, supplemented by operations in the North Sea and Offshore Africa. The company's portfolio includes light and medium oil, heavy oil, bitumen, synthetic oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas. Production averaged 1.16 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2020, and the company estimates that it holds over 11.5 billion boe of proven and probable crude oil and natural gas reserves.

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