Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ Stake Cut by The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company reduced its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited by 17.0%, selling 5,096,583 shares to own 24,813,544 shares, making it the company’s 19th biggest holding.
• Canadian Natural Resources announced a quarterly dividend of $0.4269 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 5.4%, with the first payment scheduled for October 3rd.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $62.00 for Canadian Natural Resources, with a mix of ratings including "Strong Buy" and "Outperform" from various firms.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company decreased its position in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Free Report) TSE: CNQ by 17.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 24,813,544 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 5,096,583 shares during the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources accounts for approximately 0.7% of The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company's holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 1.18% of Canadian Natural Resources worth $767,692,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV grew its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 158.3% in the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 997 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 611 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake 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 valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 937 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC lifted its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 104.0% during the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 1st quarter worth about $56,000. Finally, Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the first quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Institutional investors own 74.03% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Friday, July 11th. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Friday, August 8th. National Bankshares reiterated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Zacks Research raised Canadian Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada decreased 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 note on Friday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Up 1.0%

CNQ traded up $0.32 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $31.97. 6,090,852 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,462,160. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 12-month low of $24.65 and a 12-month high of $37.91. The firm has a market cap of $66.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.34 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $31.16 and a 200 day moving average of $30.35.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.51 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.44 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $6.39 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.97 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 19.67% and a net margin of 19.00%.During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.88 EPS. Analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 19th will be issued a $0.4269 dividend. This is a boost from Canadian Natural Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 19th. This represents a $1.71 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.3%. Canadian Natural Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.93%.

Canadian Natural Resources Company 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).