California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC – Get Rating) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $55.33.

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on shares of California Resources from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 31st. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of California Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Friday, May 19th. TheStreet cut California Resources from a “c” rating to a “d” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 2nd. Roth Capital restated a “buy” rating on shares of California Resources in a research note on Saturday, February 4th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on California Resources from $62.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 15th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On California Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CRC. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of California Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sunbelt Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of California Resources during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Gladius Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of California Resources in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. First Manhattan Co. bought a new stake in California Resources in the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in California Resources in the third quarter worth $45,000.

California Resources Price Performance

CRC stock opened at $39.59 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 1.05. California Resources has a 52 week low of $34.02 and a 52 week high of $51.46. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $2.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.09 by $0.54. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $746.35 million. California Resources had a net margin of 27.95% and a return on equity of 26.53%. Analysts anticipate that California Resources will post 5.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

California Resources Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 1st will be issued a $0.282 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 31st. This represents a $1.13 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.85%. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.57%.

California Resources Company Profile

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California Resources Corporation operates as an independent oil and natural gas company. The company explores for, produces, gathers, processes, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids for marketers, California refineries, and other purchasers that have access to transportation and storage facilities.