Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Has $15.47 Million Stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 255.9% in the fourth quarter, ending with 457,067 shares valued at about $15.47 million.
• Canadian Natural Resources reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results, posting $0.85 EPS versus the $0.74 consensus and revenue of $7.72 billion, while analysts now expect full-year EPS of 4.09.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.625 per share payable July 7, implying an annualized yield of about 5.1%; Wall Street currently rates the stock Moderate Buy with an average price target of $57.00.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 255.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 457,067 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after purchasing an additional 328,630 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $15,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Conning Inc. increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 18,004 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $609,000 after buying an additional 2,495 shares during the period. Plancorp LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $230,000. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 27.7% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 11,332 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $384,000 after buying an additional 2,461 shares during the period. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Cardinal Point Capital Management ULC now owns 228,221 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $7,741,000 after buying an additional 8,890 shares during the period. Finally, Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 46.1% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 25,184 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $852,000 after buying an additional 7,952 shares during the period. 74.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 1.3%

NYSE:CNQ opened at $48.79 on Thursday. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 1 year low of $29.30 and a 1 year high of $51.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $101.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.56 and a beta of 0.47. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $47.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $39.76.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last posted 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. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 22.04%.The firm had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 4.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources's payout ratio is presently 54.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on CNQ. ATB Cormark Capital Markets cut Canadian Natural Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings cut Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 31st. Raymond James Financial raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. One 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average 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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