Royal Bank of Canada Lowers Stock Position in California Resources Corporation $CRC

Royal Bank of Canada cut its holdings in shares of California Resources Corporation (NYSE:CRC) by 37.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 75,954 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 46,399 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in California Resources were worth $5,258,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in California Resources by 89.1% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 46,532 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,046,000 after buying an additional 21,923 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in California Resources by 6.1% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 41,663 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,832,000 after acquiring an additional 2,394 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in California Resources by 38.2% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 657,628 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $28,916,000 after acquiring an additional 181,833 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of California Resources by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 50,786 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,233,000 after acquiring an additional 1,857 shares during the period. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of California Resources by 17.7% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 31,870 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,401,000 after acquiring an additional 4,783 shares in the last quarter. 97.79% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at California Resources

In related news, EVP Jay A. Bys sold 11,907 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total value of $642,978.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 147,517 shares in the company, valued at $7,965,918. This trade represents a 7.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,721 shares of company stock valued at $2,020,380. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRC has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research cut California Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of California Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Weiss Ratings raised shares of California Resources from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $77.00 price target (down from $80.00) on shares of California Resources in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of California Resources from $70.00 to $67.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, California Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.55.

California Resources Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:CRC opened at $53.53 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. California Resources Corporation has a twelve month low of $43.24 and a twelve month high of $71.98. The company has a market cap of $4.75 billion, a PE ratio of -39.36 and a beta of 0.93. The company’s 50 day moving average is $53.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.73.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by ($0.37). California Resources had a positive return on equity of 9.87% and a negative net margin of 3.79%.The company had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $960.20 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 33.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that California Resources Corporation will post 4.02 EPS for the current year.

California Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently -119.12%.

California Resources News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting California Resources this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS lowered its price target to $67 from $70 but maintained a Buy rating, implying approximately 25% upside from the referenced share price. The revised target remains supportive of CRC’s valuation despite more cautious estimates. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings-call coverage emphasized efficiency improvements, strategic midstream expansion and progress on carbon-capture and storage initiatives. These efforts could strengthen cash flow and diversify CRC beyond upstream oil and gas production. California Resources Corp Earnings Call Highlights Efficiency
• Positive Sentiment: CRC agreed to acquire a California oil-pipeline platform from Crimson Midstream for $63 million. The deal could expand the company’s midstream footprint, improve integration and create additional fee-based revenue opportunities. CRC to acquire Crimson Midstream’s California pipeline platform
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive Vice President Jay A. Bys sold 11,907 shares for about $643,000, reducing his position by 7.47%. Because the transaction was conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, it may carry less negative signaling value than a discretionary insider sale. SEC Form 4 filing
• Negative Sentiment: CRC reported adjusted earnings of $0.99 per share, below the $1.36 consensus estimate. Revenue rose 33% year over year to $1.30 billion and exceeded forecasts, but the earnings shortfall remains a near-term overhang.
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst commentary noted that hedging contracts are reducing CRC’s ability to benefit from higher realized oil prices, limiting earnings power even as strategic initiatives advance. California Resources: Executing On Strategic Priorities But Hedges Sap Away Earnings Power

California Resources Company Profile

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.