Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) Downgraded by Zacks Research to Hold

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) was downgraded by investment analysts at Zacks Research from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on CNQ. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on Canadian Natural Resources from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 6th. ATB Cormark Capital Markets cut Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Canadian Natural Resources from $37.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $57.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 3.4%

NYSE:CNQ opened at $44.72 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $46.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $41.18. Canadian Natural Resources has a 1-year low of $29.30 and a 1-year high of $51.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.35 and a beta of 0.45.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.11. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 22.04%.The company had revenue of $7.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.16 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Canadian Natural Resources will post 4.2 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Canadian Natural Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 85.5% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 18,090 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $557,000 after buying an additional 8,336 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 92.7% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 29,096 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $896,000 after acquiring an additional 13,996 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 4.3% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 79,374 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,445,000 after acquiring an additional 3,266 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 47.3% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,644 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 528 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 65.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,513 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $142,000 after acquiring an additional 1,786 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

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.