Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Short Interest Update

Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) saw a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 111,500,000 shares, an increase of 174.0% from the August 15th total of 40,700,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,900,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 22.8 days. Approximately 5.5% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources stock traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $31.97. 11,851,069 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,560,250. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a 50 day moving average of $35.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.48. The stock has a market cap of $67.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.74 and a beta of 1.51. Canadian Natural Resources has a fifty-two week low of $29.45 and a fifty-two week high of $41.29.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $7.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.19 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 22.09% and a net margin of 18.05%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.43 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources will post 2.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.384 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.80%. Canadian Natural Resources’s payout ratio is presently 61.35%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian Natural Resources

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Park Place Capital Corp increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 100.0% in the second quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 716 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC raised its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 98.3% during the 2nd quarter. RFP Financial Group LLC now owns 710 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 100.0% in the second quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 728 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 91.6% during the second quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 868 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 415 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 104.7% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 874 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 447 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on CNQ shares. Raymond James upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Tuesday, June 11th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.50.

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).