Short Interest in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Increases By 96.3%

Key Points

• Short interest nearly doubled to 113.2 million shares by August 31, up 96.3% from mid-August. That represents 5.8% of shares outstanding and a short-interest ratio of 20.5 days.
• Canadian Natural Resources reported quarterly results above expectations, with adjusted earnings of $1.58 per share versus the $1.43 consensus and revenue of $14.74 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.625 per share, equivalent to an annualized $2.50 payout and a 4.9% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with a $57 target price.

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ was the target of a large increase in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totaling 113,170,168 shares, an increase of 96.3% from the August 15th total of 57,647,400 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 5,523,776 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 20.5 days. Currently, 5.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources stock traded up $1.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $51.37. 2,283,928 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,490,881. Canadian Natural Resources has a 1 year low of $29.68 and a 1 year high of $52.31. The company has a market capitalization of $105.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.69 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $47.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.15. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 22.78% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The firm had revenue of $14.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.40 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.9%. Canadian Natural Resources's payout ratio is 44.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Desjardins raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Scotiabank restated a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Friday, September 4th. Finally, TD Securities reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 31.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 146,331,336 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $4,956,204,000 after purchasing an additional 35,067,143 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the first quarter worth about $1,411,619,000. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 37,457,500 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,826,578,000 after purchasing an additional 3,397,500 shares during the last quarter. Mufg Securities Canada LTD. grew its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 105.7% in the 2nd quarter. Mufg Securities Canada LTD. now owns 6,350,644 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $250,892,000 after buying an additional 3,262,880 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the second quarter worth about $117,215,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL) is a Canadian independent crude oil and natural gas exploration, development, production, marketing and refining company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company produces a range of energy products, including heavy and light crude oil, synthetic crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids.

CNRL's operations are concentrated in Western Canada, where it holds significant oil sands, conventional oil and natural gas assets. Its oil sands business includes mining and upgrading operations as well as in situ thermal projects.

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