Nuveen LLC Invests $68.34 Million in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake of 2,221,358 shares in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ), valued at approximately $68.3 million, during the first quarter of the year.
• Canadian Natural Resources recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4269 per share, raising its annualized dividend to $1.71 with a yield of 5.7%.
• Brokerage firms have generally rated Canadian Natural Resources as a "Moderate Buy", with a consensus target price of $62.00.

Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,221,358 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $68,342,000. Nuveen LLC owned about 0.11% of Canadian Natural Resources at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 240.8% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 22,776,594 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $701,519,000 after buying an additional 16,094,168 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 86.6% during the 1st quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 24,262,707 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $746,675,000 after buying an additional 11,259,267 shares during the period. Canoe Financial LP boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 403.7% during the 1st quarter. Canoe Financial LP now owns 4,738,577 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $145,828,000 after buying an additional 3,797,846 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 7.3% during the 4th quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 34,052,775 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,051,210,000 after buying an additional 2,312,437 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 36,963,702 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,139,753,000 after buying an additional 1,844,700 shares during the period. 74.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Up 0.1%

CNQ stock traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $29.83. 3,142,682 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,632,908. The company has a market cap of $62.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.58 and a beta of 1.05. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $31.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $30.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 52 week low of $24.65 and a 52 week high of $37.91.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $6.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.97 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 19.00% and a return on equity of 19.67%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.88 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be paid a $0.4269 dividend. This represents a $1.71 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 19th. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. National Bankshares reiterated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $64.00 to $62.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian Natural Resources currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $62.00.

Canadian Natural Resources 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).