Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Sells 75,725 Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 56.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 58,431 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 75,725 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $1,800,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CNQ. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS bought a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources in the first quarter valued at about $2,089,000. Whittier Trust Co. raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 11.9% in the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 47,520 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 5,038 shares in the last quarter. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 1st quarter valued at $3,697,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,757,518 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $146,532,000 after acquiring an additional 385,009 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hohimer Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,534,000. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

Canadian Natural Resources stock opened at $31.00 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $30.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.16 and a beta of 1.03. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 12-month low of $24.65 and a 12-month high of $37.91.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.14 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 20.90% and a net margin of 16.92%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.37 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate 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 was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.4227 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This is a boost from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.45%. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CNQ. Raymond James Financial raised Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $63.00 price target on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. National Bankshares reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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).