Canadian Natural Resources (TSE:CNQ) Hits New 1-Year High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Canadian Natural Resources reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as C$78.34 and closing near that level at C$78.31, up from the previous close of C$77.05.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but generally positive: six analysts rate the stock Buy and six rate it Hold, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus, though the average price target of C$70.00 is below the current price.
• The company reported C$2.19 in quarterly EPS on C$14.74 billion in revenue, with a 24.93% net margin and 26.67% return on equity; a director also increased her holdings by 66.2% through an open-market purchase.

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (TSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) NYSE: CNQ reached a new 52-week high on Friday. The stock traded as high as C$78.34 and last traded at C$78.31, with a volume of 1,884,925 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at C$77.05.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNQ has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce upped their price target on Canadian Natural Resources from C$70.00 to C$75.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Raymond James Financial cut Canadian Natural Resources from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from C$70.00 to C$69.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Canadian Natural Resources from C$67.00 to C$75.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Scotia boosted their price objective on Canadian Natural Resources from C$71.00 to C$73.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Finally, ATB Cormark Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from C$70.00 to C$85.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian Natural Resources presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of C$70.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of C$160.84 billion, a PE ratio of 13.88, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 36.64. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is C$71.02 and its 200 day simple moving average is C$63.54.

Canadian Natural Resources (TSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) NYSE: CNQ last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported C$2.19 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of C$14.74 billion during the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 24.93% and a return on equity of 26.67%. On average, research analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 3.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Canadian Natural Resources

In other news, Director Shelley Ann Marie Brown purchased 709 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was bought at an average cost of C$70.44 per share, with a total value of C$49,941.96. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 1,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately C$125,383.20. This represents a 66.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. Corporate insiders own 4.26% of the company's stock.

About Canadian Natural Resources

Canadian Natural Resources is one of the largest oil and natural gas producers in western Canada, supplemented by operations in the North Sea and Offshore Africa. The company's portfolio includes light and medium oil, heavy oil, bitumen, synthetic oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas. Production averaged 1.16 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2020, and the company estimates that it holds over 11.5 billion boe of proven and probable crude oil and natural gas reserves.

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