Nicola Wealth Management LTD. Trims Stock Position in Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ

Key Points

• Nicola Wealth Management reduced its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 24.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 143,000 shares and leaving it with 432,900 shares worth about $14.7 million.
• Several other institutional investors adjusted positions in the stock, and overall 74.03% of Canadian Natural Resources is owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• Analysts remain generally positive on the company: the stock has a Moderate Buy consensus with a $57.00 price target, and the company recently beat quarterly earnings estimates while announcing a 5.1% dividend yield.

Nicola Wealth Management LTD. cut its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 24.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 432,900 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 143,000 shares during the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources makes up approximately 1.3% of Nicola Wealth Management LTD.'s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Nicola Wealth Management LTD.'s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $14,665,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 31.6% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 6,651 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $225,000 after acquiring an additional 1,596 shares during the period. Morningstar Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $699,000. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,873,000. Guinness Asset Management LTD increased its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 256,153 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $8,511,000 after acquiring an additional 8,020 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 19.2% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,889 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $199,000 after acquiring an additional 950 shares during the period. 74.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $37.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets downgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

NYSE CNQ opened at $48.67 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $47.24 and its 200-day moving average price is $40.00. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 52-week low of $29.30 and a 52-week high of $51.34. The company has a market cap of $101.25 billion, a PE ratio of 14.53 and a beta of 0.47.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 22.04% and a return on equity of 17.49%. The firm had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 4.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be paid a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.63%.

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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