LSV Asset Management Sells 42,100 Shares of California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC)

LSV Asset Management trimmed its position in shares of California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,064,023 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 42,100 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned approximately 4.47% of California Resources worth $163,067,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CRC. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in California Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $20,713,000. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in California Resources by 4.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,100,283 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $446,326,000 after buying an additional 344,043 shares in the last quarter. Vest Financial LLC grew its stake in California Resources by 7,345.1% during the first quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 340,168 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $18,743,000 after buying an additional 335,599 shares in the last quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC grew its stake in California Resources by 49.1% during the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 627,553 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $34,472,000 after buying an additional 206,607 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in California Resources by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,299,902 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $180,440,000 after buying an additional 190,588 shares in the last quarter. 97.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other California Resources news, Director Christian S. Kendall acquired 20,895 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $47.97 per share, for a total transaction of $1,002,333.15. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 24,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,180,062. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Francisco Leon sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.18, for a total value of $368,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 166,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,181,437.26. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Christian S. Kendall bought 20,895 shares of California Resources stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $47.97 per share, with a total value of $1,002,333.15. Following the purchase, the director now owns 24,600 shares in the company, valued at $1,180,062. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

California Resources Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE CRC traded down $1.13 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $48.14. The stock had a trading volume of 938,550 shares, compared to its average volume of 884,770. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 2.33 and a current ratio of 2.43. California Resources Co. has a twelve month low of $43.09 and a twelve month high of $58.44. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $50.51 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.30. The firm has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.98.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by ($0.36). California Resources had a net margin of 7.61% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The company had revenue of $514.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $477.07 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that California Resources Co. will post 3.45 EPS for the current year.

California Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $0.3875 per share. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. This is an increase from California Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. California Resources’s payout ratio is presently 44.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CRC. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of California Resources from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of California Resources from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of California Resources in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of California Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $57.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of California Resources in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.00.

About California Resources

California Resources Corporation operates as an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production, and carbon management company in the United States. The company explores, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids for marketers, California refineries, and other purchasers that have access to transportation and storage facilities.