Avalon Capital Management Invests $411,000 in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Key Points

• Avalon Capital Management invested $411,000 in Canadian Natural Resources Limited, acquiring 13,359 shares during the first quarter.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $0.81, exceeding expectations, but its revenue of $6.96 billion fell short of analysts' estimates of $10.14 billion.
• Canadian Natural Resources increased its quarterly dividend to $0.4227, representing a 5.39% yield and a positive change from the previous dividend of $0.41.

Avalon Capital Management acquired a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 13,359 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $411,000.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 4.8% in the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 33,100,240 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,018,469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,519,523 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 819,352 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $25,208,000 after acquiring an additional 46,977 shares during the last quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 158.3% in the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 997 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 27.9% in the 1st quarter. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. now owns 65,456 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 14,285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 45.7% during the 1st quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd now owns 215,164 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $6,588,000 after buying an additional 67,478 shares during the period. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 0.7%

NYSE CNQ traded down $0.22 on Thursday, reaching $31.68. The stock had a trading volume of 2,694,495 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,555,040. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 1 year low of $24.65 and a 1 year high of $37.91. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $31.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $30.40. The company has a market capitalization of $66.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.43 and a beta of 1.03.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.14 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 20.90% and a net margin of 16.92%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.37 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a dividend of $0.4227 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $1.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.34%. This is an increase from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CNQ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Raymond James Financial raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. National Bankshares reiterated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Friday, July 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $63.00.

About Canadian Natural Resources

Canadian Natural Resources Limited acquires, explores for, develops, produces, markets, and sells crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGLs). The company offers light and medium crude oil, primary heavy crude oil, Pelican Lake heavy crude oil, bitumen (thermal oil), and synthetic crude oil (SCO).