Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Boosts Holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Key Points

• The Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited by 36.3%, purchasing an additional 74,156 shares, bringing its total holdings to 278,476 shares worth approximately $8.57 million.
• Canadian Natural Resources recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4227, increasing from its previous $0.41, reflecting a 5.4% yield for shareholders.
• Analysts have shown a favorable outlook for Canadian Natural Resources, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.00.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System boosted its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 36.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 278,476 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after buying an additional 74,156 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $8,567,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 158.3% during the first quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 997 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 253.2% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,307 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 104.0% during the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the period. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the first quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the first quarter worth about $68,000. Institutional investors own 74.03% of the company's stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of CNQ stock traded down $0.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $30.32. 7,039,371 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,555,332. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 12 month low of $24.65 and a 12 month high of $37.91. The company has a market cap of $63.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company's 50-day moving average price is $31.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.38.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $6.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.97 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 19.87% and a net margin of 19.00%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.88 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be given a $0.4269 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 19th. This represents a $1.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. This is a boost from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Canadian Natural Resources's payout ratio is presently 67.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $64.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. National Bankshares reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $62.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

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).