Bank of Nova Scotia Buys 11,259,267 Shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ)

Bank of Nova Scotia grew its holdings in shares of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) by 86.6% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 24,262,707 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,259,267 shares during the period. Canadian Natural Resources comprises approximately 1.8% of Bank of Nova Scotia’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Bank of Nova Scotia’s holdings in Canadian Natural Resources were worth $746,675,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in CNQ. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Investment Management Corp VA ADV boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 158.3% during the 1st quarter. Investment Management Corp VA ADV now owns 997 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 253.2% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,307 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 937 shares in the last quarter. Huntington National Bank boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 64.1% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,493 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 583 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC boosted its position in shares of Canadian Natural Resources by 104.0% during the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 1,569 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 74.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on CNQ shares. National Bankshares restated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Canadian Natural Resources in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upgraded shares of Canadian Natural Resources from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Canadian Natural Resources presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $63.00.

Canadian Natural Resources Stock Performance

Shares of CNQ opened at $30.99 on Friday. Canadian Natural Resources Limited has a one year low of $24.65 and a one year high of $37.91. The company has a 50-day moving average of $31.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.40. The stock has a market cap of $64.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.15 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.53.

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE:CNQ) (TSE:CNQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.08. Canadian Natural Resources had a net margin of 16.92% and a return on equity of 20.90%. The company had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $10.14 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.37 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Canadian Natural Resources Limited will post 2.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Canadian Natural Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a $0.4227 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. This is a positive change from Canadian Natural Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. This represents a $1.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.5%. Canadian Natural Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 67.06%.

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).