Hennessy Advisors Inc. Cuts Holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ

Hennessy Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 7.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 164,300 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 12,600 shares during the quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $6,490,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barometer Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the first quarter valued at $6,198,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 2nd quarter worth about $117,215,000. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 22.4% during the 1st quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 5,122,209 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $252,883,000 after buying an additional 938,210 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 59.8% during the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 78,161 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,646,000 after buying an additional 29,249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 58.8% in the 1st quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 775,589 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $37,825,000 after acquiring an additional 287,300 shares during the last quarter. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

CNQ opened at $49.07 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $44.89 and a 200 day moving average of $45.44. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 52-week low of $29.68 and a 52-week high of $51.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market cap of $101.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.12 and a beta of 0.46.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.58 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.43 by $0.15. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 22.78%.The business had revenue of $14.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.40 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 11th. Canadian Natural Resources’s payout ratio is currently 44.69%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. TD Securities reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Scotiabank reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Desjardins upgraded Canadian Natural Resources to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Raymond James Financial upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Canadian Natural Resources presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.