Scotia Capital Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Key Points

• Scotia Capital Inc. increased its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited by 4.0% in the first quarter, owning over 6.2 million shares worth approximately $191 million.
• Canadian Natural Resources has received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from analysts, with four analysts giving it a buy rating and a target price of $63.00.
• The company announced a dividend increase to $0.4227 per share, representing a yield of 5.5%, with a payout ratio of 67.06%.

Scotia Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 4.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,211,533 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 241,651 shares during the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources accounts for about 1.0% of Scotia Capital Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. Scotia Capital Inc. owned about 0.30% of Canadian Natural Resources worth $191,073,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV increased its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 158.3% in the first quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 997 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 611 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 253.2% in the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,307 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank increased its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 64.1% in the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,493 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 583 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC increased its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 104.0% in the first quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. 74.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on CNQ shares. Raymond James Financial raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. National Bankshares reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Friday, July 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian Natural Resources currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $63.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

Canadian Natural Resources stock opened at $30.99 on Friday. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a one year low of $24.65 and a one year high of $37.91. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $31.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 1.05.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 20.90% and a net margin of 16.92%. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.37 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 EPS for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were paid a dividend of $0.4227 per share. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio is 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).

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