Bank of Nova Scotia Decreases Stake in Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Bank of Nova Scotia cut its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 43.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,003,440 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 10,003,416 shares during the quarter. Canadian Natural Resources accounts for about 0.7% of Bank of Nova Scotia’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $401,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 92,550,104 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $2,857,337,000 after purchasing an additional 7,372,718 shares during the last quarter. Ruggaard & Associates LLC increased its stake in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 9.8% in the fourth quarter. Ruggaard & Associates LLC now owns 10,100 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $312,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the period. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Old West Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Canadian Natural Resources by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Old West Investment Management LLC now owns 395,161 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $12,199,000 after purchasing an additional 39,178 shares during the period. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN boosted its holdings in Canadian Natural Resources by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 706,198 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $21,792,000 after purchasing an additional 66,075 shares during the last quarter. 74.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Canadian Natural Resources Price Performance

NYSE:CNQ opened at $26.60 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $29.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.00. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a 12 month low of $25.62 and a 12 month high of $41.29. The firm has a market cap of $55.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33 and a beta of 1.10. 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 Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, March 21st were paid a $0.4117 dividend. This is an increase from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. This represents a $1.65 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.19%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 21st. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.88%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Raymond James reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Tudor Pickering lowered shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Canadian Natural Resources from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $63.00 price objective on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Canadian Natural Resources from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.00.

Canadian Natural Resources 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).