Jay Bys Sells 11,907 Shares of California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Stock

California Resources Corporation (NYSE:CRC) EVP Jay Bys sold 11,907 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $642,978.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 147,517 shares in the company, valued at $7,965,918. The trade was a 7.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

California Resources Trading Down 1.1%

NYSE CRC traded down $0.60 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $53.53. 628,682 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 896,946. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a PE ratio of -39.36 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.55. California Resources Corporation has a 1-year low of $43.24 and a 1-year high of $71.98. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $53.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.70.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 10th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.36 by ($0.37). California Resources had a negative net margin of 3.79% and a positive return on equity of 9.87%. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $960.20 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 33.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that California Resources Corporation will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.405 dividend. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently -119.12%.

California Resources News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting California Resources this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS lowered its price target from $70 to $67 but maintained a Buy rating, implying substantial potential upside from recent trading levels. The revised target still reflects confidence in CRC’s longer-term prospects. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlighted operating efficiency, strategic midstream growth and progress on carbon capture and storage initiatives during its earnings call. These efforts could improve cost control, diversify cash flow and strengthen CRC’s integrated-energy strategy. California Resources Corp Earnings Call Highlights Efficiency
• Positive Sentiment: California Resources agreed to acquire Crimson Midstream’s California pipeline platform for approximately $63 million. The transaction would expand CRC’s control over transportation infrastructure and may create operational synergies and additional midstream revenue opportunities. CRC to acquire Crimson Midstream’s California pipeline platform
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage of second-quarter results emphasized midstream expansion, operational efficiencies and the CCS push as potential reasons to reconsider CRC’s investment case. However, investors are likely seeking evidence that these initiatives can translate into sustained earnings and cash-flow growth. CRC’s Q2 Beat, CCS Push and Pipeline Deal
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts noted that hedges are reducing CRC’s ability to benefit fully from stronger oil prices. In addition, the company’s reported quarterly EPS missed consensus expectations, despite revenue growth, keeping pressure on near-term profitability and investor sentiment. California Resources: Executing on Strategic Priorities But Hedges Sap Away Earnings Power

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CRC. Stephens set a $85.00 price target on California Resources and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $77.00 price objective (down from $80.00) on shares of California Resources in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of California Resources from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of California Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of California Resources from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.55.

Institutional Trading of California Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in California Resources by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 4,683 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $209,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its position in shares of California Resources by 14.6% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $75,000 after buying an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of California Resources by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,440 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of California Resources by 13.6% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,234 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $155,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of California Resources by 8.8% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 4,053 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $281,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the period. 97.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About California Resources

California Resources Corporation (NYSE: CRC) is an independent exploration and production company focused exclusively on developing oil and natural gas assets in California. Headquartered in Newport Beach, the company engages in hydraulic fracturing, well completions, reservoir management and enhanced recovery operations to produce crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids.

CRC’s operations are concentrated in three core regions: the Los Angeles Basin, the Ventura Basin and the San Joaquin Basin.