Weiss Ratings Reaffirms Hold (C) Rating for Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "hold (C)" rating for Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE: CNQ), indicating a neutral outlook for the stock.
• Canadian Natural Resources has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $62.00, according to multiple analysts.
• The company's recent quarterly earnings showed a net margin of 19% and earnings per share of $0.51, surpassing analysts' expectations.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ - Get Free Report) TSE: CNQ's stock had its "hold (c)" rating reaffirmed by investment analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. National Bankshares reissued a "sector perform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. TD Securities restated a "buy" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $62.00 price target on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $62.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources stock traded down $0.10 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $32.66. 8,501,124 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,622,456. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market cap of $68.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.58 and a beta of 0.97. The firm's fifty day moving average is $31.29 and its 200-day moving average is $30.83. Canadian Natural Resources has a 52 week low of $24.65 and a 52 week high of $37.91.

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

Institutional Trading of Canadian Natural Resources

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 27.5% during the first quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 2,183,598 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $67,201,000 after purchasing an additional 470,391 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 41.9% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 49,307 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,519,000 after buying an additional 14,561 shares in the last quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 11.0% during the second quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. now owns 2,370,885 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $74,446,000 after acquiring an additional 235,198 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 594.8% during the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 133,501 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $4,112,000 after purchasing an additional 114,287 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Graybill Wealth Management LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the first quarter worth about $3,697,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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).

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