T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Sells 7,180,282 Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited $CNQ

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. cut its stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 17.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 34,178,745 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 7,180,282 shares during the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources accounts for about 0.7% of T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 1.64% of Canadian Natural Resources worth $1,156,951,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Manchester Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Leonteq Securities AG bought a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC bought a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, LOM Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:CNQ opened at $40.97 on Friday. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a twelve month low of $29.30 and a twelve month high of $51.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market cap of $85.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.23 and a beta of 0.45. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $46.02 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.69.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $7.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.57 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 22.04% and a return on equity of 17.49%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 4.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.625 per share. This represents a $2.50 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 54.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CNQ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target 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. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Scotiabank reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.