California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.37 EPS

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) issued its earnings results on Monday. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by ($0.37), FiscalAI reports. California Resources had a negative net margin of 16.10% and a positive return on equity of 10.12%. The business had revenue of $1.30 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $960.20 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 33.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Here are the key takeaways from California Resources’ conference call:

• Operational execution and cost savings improved. CRC reported $338 million of adjusted EBITDAX and $151 million of free cash flow before working capital, while achieving more than 100% of its 2026 Berry synergy target six months early and raising cumulative synergy and structural cost-reduction expectations through 2028 to up to $470 million.
• CRC agreed to acquire Crimson’s approximately 2,000-mile California crude pipeline network in an all-cash deal management says is financially accretive and priced at about 4.4 times estimated 2027 EBITDA. The acquisition is intended to improve market access, pricing flexibility, third-party contracted cash flow, and integration across CRC’s California operations, pending final CPUC approval.
• Temporary transportation and marketing disputes constrained takeaway capacity, causing a roughly 1,500-barrel-per-day inventory build and about $25 million of quarterly financial impact. CRC expects third-quarter oil realizations of approximately 93% of Brent, although management views the pressure as temporary and expects improvement thereafter.
• Drilling and well productivity gains are lowering the long-term capital intensity of the California business. About 80% of year-to-date wells exceeded type-curve expectations, average initial production was more than 10% above plan, and CRC now expects to maintain California production with six rigs and approximately 5% less normalized D&C and workover capital.
• CRC advanced its newer carbon-management and power initiatives, generating first revenue from CO2 injection at its Elk Hills CCS project and partnering with Beacon Data Centers on a proposed 275-megawatt Golden Valley technology hub. Management also characterized the Uinta asset as non-core because of its higher capital intensity, costs, declines, and lower-quality crude.

California Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CRC opened at $53.85 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -10.36 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $54.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $58.66. California Resources has a twelve month low of $43.24 and a twelve month high of $71.98.

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 given a dividend of $0.405 per share. This represents a $1.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. California Resources’s payout ratio is presently -31.15%.

More California Resources News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strategic midstream expansion: CRC agreed to acquire Crimson Midstream Holdings’ California pipeline platform for approximately $63 million in cash. Management said the transaction will expand the company’s integrated California energy infrastructure platform and could improve control over its transportation and midstream operations. CRC to acquire Crimson Midstream’s California pipeline platform
• Positive Sentiment: Revenue substantially exceeded expectations: Second-quarter operating revenue reached approximately $1.30 billion, up 33% year over year and well above the roughly $960 million analyst consensus. Average production was 149 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day, with oil accounting for 81%. California Resources Corporation Reports Second Quarter 2026 Financial and Operating Results
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder return maintained: CRC declared a quarterly dividend of $0.405 per share, payable September 18 to shareholders of record September 4. The payout represents an annualized yield of approximately 3% at the referenced share price.
• Neutral Sentiment: CRC reaffirmed full-year 2026 capital spending guidance of $520 million to $560 million while lowering drilling, completion and workover spending guidance to $370 million to $390 million. The change may improve capital discipline but also suggests a more measured development program.
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability missed expectations: Quarterly EPS was $0.99, below the $1.31–$1.36 consensus range and down from $1.10 a year earlier. Results included a significant noncash gain from commodity-derivative fair-value changes, making the underlying earnings performance less compelling. California Resources Corporation Q2 Earnings Lag Estimates
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider activity was entirely composed of sales over the past six months, including a 3.5-million-share sale by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, which may weigh on investor sentiment.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on CRC shares. Weiss Ratings lowered California Resources from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on California Resources from $78.00 to $70.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wall Street Zen cut California Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Zacks Research downgraded California Resources from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $70.00 target price (down from $78.00) on shares of California Resources in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.09.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Jay A. Bys sold 11,907 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.00, for a total transaction of $642,978.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 159,424 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,608,896. The trade was a 6.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Resources

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 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 worth $209,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its position in California Resources by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 1,677 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in California Resources by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,715 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 362 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its position in California Resources by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 4,512 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $202,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in California Resources by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 4,861 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $217,000 after acquiring an additional 384 shares during the last quarter. 97.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

California Resources Company Profile

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.