Wells Fargo & Company Issues Positive Forecast for California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Stock Price

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) had its target price increased by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $72.00 to $76.00 in a report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “overweight” rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price suggests a potential upside of 17.88% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of California Resources from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. TD Cowen upgraded shares of California Resources to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. UBS Group upped their price objective on California Resources from $63.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $70.00 price objective on California Resources in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Zacks Research raised California Resources from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $67.80.

California Resources Stock Performance

California Resources stock opened at $64.47 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $50.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.65 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. California Resources has a 12-month low of $30.97 and a 12-month high of $66.35.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 2nd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $924.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $789.67 million. California Resources had a return on equity of 10.23% and a net margin of 9.89%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.91 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that California Resources will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Noelle M. Repetti sold 8,564 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.71, for a total value of $545,612.44. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,684 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $489,547.64. This represents a 52.71% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark Allen Mcfarland sold 16,372 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.83, for a total value of $1,061,396.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 76,265 shares in the company, valued at $4,944,259.95. This represents a 17.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 72,283 shares of company stock worth $4,636,646. Company insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On California Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of California Resources by 82.5% during the 3rd quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 500 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC bought a new position in California Resources during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its holdings in California Resources by 363.6% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 561 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC bought a new stake in California Resources in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Finally, Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in California Resources in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Institutional investors own 97.79% of the company’s stock.

About California Resources

California Resources Corporation (NYSE: CRC) is an independent exploration and production company focused exclusively on developing oil and natural gas assets in California. Headquartered in Newport Beach, the company engages in hydraulic fracturing, well completions, reservoir management and enhanced recovery operations to produce crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids.

CRC’s operations are concentrated in three core regions: the Los Angeles Basin, the Ventura Basin and the San Joaquin Basin.