Wexford Capital LP Trims Stock Holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Wexford Capital LP reduced its stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 87.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 37,280 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 257,110 shares during the quarter. Wexford Capital LP’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $1,151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Sandy Spring Bank purchased a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

CNQ stock opened at $30.69 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.84. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 1 year low of $24.65 and a 1 year high of $38.86. The firm has a market cap of $64.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.92 and a beta of 1.04. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $30.67.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.08. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 20.07% and a net margin of 18.45%. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.37 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.4227 per share. This represents a $1.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Tudor Pickering downgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Evercore ISI upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.00.

About Canadian Natural Resources

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).