Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) Reaches New 1-Year High - Still a Buy?

Key Points

• CNQ reached a new 52-week high of $52.31, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $57.00.
• Canadian Natural Resources exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.58 in earnings per share versus the $1.43 consensus and revenue of $14.74 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.625, equivalent to $2.50 annually and a 4.9% yield; institutional investors own approximately 74% of the stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $52.31 and last traded at $51.31, with a volume of 345905 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $51.35.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CNQ shares. Zacks Research lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Friday, August 7th. TD Securities reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Desjardins upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $57.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 0.6%

The firm's 50-day moving average price is $46.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.06. The firm has a market cap of $105.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.59 and a beta of 0.47. 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 announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $14.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.40 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 22.78%. As a group, research analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 4.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.625 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.69%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Canadian Natural Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 35,067,143 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 42,745,981 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,446,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,342,954 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund raised its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 37,457,500 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,826,578,000 after purchasing an additional 3,397,500 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the 1st quarter worth about $1,411,619,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,518,621 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $710,119,000 after buying an additional 1,347,844 shares during the last quarter. 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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