Amundi Buys 217,437 Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ

Key Points

• Amundi increased its Canadian Natural Resources stake by 2.8% in the first quarter, acquiring 217,437 shares to hold 7.99 million shares valued at approximately $389.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 74.03% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with CNQ carrying a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $57.00. Recent upgrades included Raymond James to “outperform” and Zacks Research to “strong buy.”
• CNQ reported quarterly EPS of $0.85, exceeding estimates of $0.74, on revenue of $7.72 billion. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.625 per share, equivalent to a 5.4% annualized yield.

Amundi increased its position in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 2.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,994,427 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 217,437 shares during the quarter. Amundi owned about 0.38% of Canadian Natural Resources worth $389,568,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 31.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 146,331,336 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $4,956,204,000 after purchasing an additional 35,067,143 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 93,305,198 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $3,160,340,000 after buying an additional 818,809 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 42,745,981 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,446,951,000 after buying an additional 1,342,954 shares during the period. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 37,457,500 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,826,578,000 after buying an additional 3,397,500 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the 1st quarter valued at $1,411,619,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. Scotiabank raised Canadian Natural Resources to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Desjardins raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Up 5.2%

NYSE:CNQ opened at $46.49 on Thursday. 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 Limited has a 12-month low of $29.30 and a 12-month high of $51.34. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $43.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $43.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88 and a beta of 0.47.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.57 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 22.04%.During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.16 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.4%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.03%.

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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