Verity & Verity LLC Makes New Investment in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Verity & Verity LLC purchased a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 265,552 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $8,819,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of CNQ. Capital World Investors grew its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 0.5% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 144,344,207 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $11,011,765,000 after purchasing an additional 684,532 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 96.2% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 42,518,833 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,514,190,000 after purchasing an additional 20,843,193 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lifted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 93.0% during the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 41,464,502 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,476,644,000 after purchasing an additional 19,980,902 shares in the last quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 105.3% in the second quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 31,668,045 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,127,382,000 after acquiring an additional 16,245,046 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 90.3% in the second quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 30,017,414 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,069,338,000 after acquiring an additional 14,246,978 shares in the last quarter. 74.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Desjardins upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

CNQ stock opened at $33.66 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a one year low of $29.45 and a one year high of $41.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.04 billion, a PE ratio of 13.07 and a beta of 1.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $34.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $35.44.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $7.62 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.40 billion. Canadian Natural Resources had a return on equity of 20.07% and a net margin of 18.45%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.96 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.388 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.61%. This is an increase from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.58%.

Canadian Natural Resources Company Profile

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).