Cannell & Spears LLC Sells 20,650 Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ

Cannell & Spears LLC decreased its position in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 40.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,984 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 20,650 shares during the quarter. Cannell & Spears LLC’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $1,461,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, LOM Asset Management Ltd acquired a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CNQ opened at $46.45 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $43.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $96.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.86 and a beta of 0.47. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 52 week low of $29.30 and a 52 week high of $51.34.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.11. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 22.04%.The firm had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.57 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.16 EPS. Analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were paid a $0.625 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.4%. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.03%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CNQ. Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Desjardins upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Scotiabank raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Profile

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.