Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ is JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd's 7th Largest Position

Key Points

• JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd dramatically increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources, boosting holdings by 15,275.9% to 615,035 shares. The position was worth about $20.9 million and became the fund’s 7th largest holding.
• Canadian Natural Resources reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting EPS of $0.85 versus the $0.74 consensus and revenue of $7.72 billion versus $7.57 billion expected. The company also maintained strong profitability, with a 22.04% net margin and 17.49% return on equity.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.625 per share, equal to $2.50 annually and a 5.5% yield. Analysts currently rate CNQ a Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $57.00.

JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd grew its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 15,275.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 615,035 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after buying an additional 611,035 shares during the period. Canadian Natural Resources accounts for approximately 1.4% of JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd's holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $20,880,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,616,219 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $51,654,000 after buying an additional 43,356 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,716,038 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $54,883,000 after buying an additional 33,609 shares in the last quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 4.9% in 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 in the last quarter. SCP Investment LP acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources in the 3rd quarter worth $1,144,000. Finally, Marshall Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter worth $869,000. 74.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources stock opened at $45.86 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $95.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.69 and a beta of 0.47. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $47.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $40.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.98. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 1 year low of $29.30 and a 1 year high of $51.34.

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

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio is currently 54.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNQ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $37.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $57.00.

About Canadian Natural Resources

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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