California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) Receives $63.00 Average PT from Brokerages

California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eight analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $63.00.

CRC has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of California Resources from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of California Resources in a report on Monday, August 12th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of California Resources from $62.00 to $55.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Bank of America raised shares of California Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $57.00 to $65.00 in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of California Resources in a report on Friday, August 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company.

California Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:CRC opened at $49.93 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $50.11 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.09. California Resources has a 12-month low of $43.09 and a 12-month high of $58.44. The firm has a market cap of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of 14.31, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a quick ratio of 2.33, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last announced 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 return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 7.61%. The business 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 company earned $0.53 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that California Resources will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

California Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $0.3875 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This is a boost from California Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.55 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 44.41%.

Insider Buying and Selling at California Resources

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Creative Planning raised its position in California Resources by 32.0% in the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 13,210 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $703,000 after acquiring an additional 3,205 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in California Resources in the second quarter worth about $389,000. Scientech Research LLC raised its position in California Resources by 108.3% in the second quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 10,568 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 5,495 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in California Resources by 138.4% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 282,090 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $15,013,000 after acquiring an additional 163,758 shares during the period. Finally, Maverick Capital Ltd. raised its position in California Resources by 362.4% in the second quarter. Maverick Capital Ltd. now owns 27,490 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 21,545 shares during the period. 97.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.