Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ Shares Sold by Capital World Investors

Capital World Investors trimmed its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 199,820,601 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 3,513,338 shares during the period. Canadian Natural Resources comprises approximately 0.9% of Capital World Investors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Capital World Investors owned about 0.10% of Canadian Natural Resources worth $6,767,557,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CNQ. Leonteq Securities AG acquired a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. LOM Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Boyd Watterson Asset Management LLC OH acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter worth $51,000. 74.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian Natural Resources Trading Down 4.0%

Canadian Natural Resources stock opened at $45.74 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $46.78 and its 200-day moving average is $40.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.98. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 1 year low of $29.30 and a 1 year high of $51.34. The company has a market cap of $95.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.65 and a beta of 0.45.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.11. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 22.04% and a return on equity of 17.49%. The company had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.16 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be given a $0.625 dividend. This represents a $2.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on CNQ shares. Zacks Research raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Raymond James Financial raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.00.

About Canadian Natural Resources

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE: CNQ) is a Calgary-based independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Established in the early 1970s and publicly listed in Canada and the United States, the company is principally engaged in the exploration, development, production, and marketing of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Its asset base spans conventional and unconventional reservoirs and includes oil sands mining and in-situ thermal projects, midstream processing and upgrading capacity, and related field operations.

The company’s operations are concentrated in Western Canada, where it develops heavy crude, bitumen from oil sands and conventional light crude and natural gas resources.