Canadian Natural Resources Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:CNQ)

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors acquired 11,627 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 210% compared to the average daily volume of 3,750 call options.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE CNQ traded down $1.18 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $48.46. 2,447,041 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,415,297. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.00. Canadian Natural Resources has a 52-week low of $29.68 and a 52-week high of $52.31. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $48.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.94 billion, a PE ratio of 11.96 and a beta of 0.47.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $14.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.40 billion. Analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources will post 4.05 EPS for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 5.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 44.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on CNQ shares. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Wednesday. Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Friday, August 7th. Desjardins raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of 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 assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $57.00.

Institutional Trading of Canadian Natural Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CNQ. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 2.3% in the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 50,990 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,014,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167 shares in the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 36.2% during the 2nd quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 121,459 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,798,000 after acquiring an additional 32,285 shares in the last quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 198.9% in the 2nd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 491,355 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $19,436,000 after purchasing an additional 326,962 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 72.9% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 126,078 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,980,000 after purchasing an additional 53,152 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Mraz Amerine & Associates Inc. now owns 236,287 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $9,333,000 after purchasing an additional 2,370 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL) is a Canadian independent crude oil and natural gas exploration, development, production, marketing and refining company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. The company produces a range of energy products, including heavy and light crude oil, synthetic crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids.

CNRL’s operations are concentrated in Western Canada, where it holds significant oil sands, conventional oil and natural gas assets. Its oil sands business includes mining and upgrading operations as well as in situ thermal projects.