Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) Sees Large Volume Increase – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) saw strong trading volume on Wednesday . 12,565,276 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 148% from the previous session’s volume of 5,062,611 shares.The stock last traded at $30.84 and had previously closed at $29.99.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Tudor Pickering cut shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Raymond James restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Down 0.2 %

The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $30.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $32.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $63.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.78 and a beta of 1.48.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.4117 per share. This represents a $1.65 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 21st. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. Canadian Natural Resources’s payout ratio is currently 77.88%.

Institutional Trading of Canadian Natural Resources

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Continuum Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 144.1% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 830 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Sandy Spring Bank acquired a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

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).