Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) Stock Holdings Increased by Argent Trust Co

Argent Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 73.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,492 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,816 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $658,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 144,344,207 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $11,011,765,000 after acquiring an additional 684,532 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 1.7% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,813,537 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,343,849,000 after purchasing an additional 714,346 shares during the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 96.2% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 42,518,833 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,514,190,000 after purchasing an additional 20,843,193 shares during the period. Yacktman Asset Management LP increased its stake in Canadian Natural Resources by 95.9% in the 2nd quarter. Yacktman Asset Management LP now owns 29,456,746 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,048,660,000 after purchasing an additional 14,418,835 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FIL Ltd raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 23,340,567 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,529,146,000 after buying an additional 250,256 shares during the period. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Canadian Natural Resources Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE:CNQ opened at $33.78 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $34.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 12-month low of $29.45 and a 12-month high of $41.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 1.51.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.26. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 22.09% and a net margin of 18.05%. The firm had revenue of $7.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.43 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Canadian Natural Resources Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 4th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $0.384 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $1.54 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.55%. Canadian Natural Resources’s payout ratio is 61.75%.

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).