Ritholtz Wealth Management Reduces Stock Holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Ritholtz Wealth Management trimmed its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 37.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 58,306 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 34,805 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $1,796,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Sandy Spring Bank purchased a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CNQ. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $63.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 0.5%

NYSE:CNQ traded down $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $33.45. The stock had a trading volume of 3,591,658 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,650,091. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a twelve month low of $24.65 and a twelve month high of $37.91. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $30.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market capitalization of $69.96 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15 and a beta of 1.03.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.14 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 16.92% and a return on equity of 20.90%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.37 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 EPS for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.4227 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This is a boost from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.06%. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.06%.

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).