California Resources (NYSE:CRC) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

CRC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of California Resources in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Citigroup raised their price target on California Resources from $63.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays upped their price objective on California Resources from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. TD Cowen began coverage on California Resources in a report on Friday, August 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of California Resources in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $65.50.

California Resources Stock Performance

Shares of CRC stock opened at $56.57 on Friday. California Resources has a 52-week low of $43.09 and a 52-week high of $60.41. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $52.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $50.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.84 billion, a PE ratio of 8.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.98.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.62. California Resources had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 17.43%. The business had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $973.13 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.02 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 194.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that California Resources will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Noelle M. Repetti sold 10,000 shares of California Resources stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total transaction of $530,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 17,301 shares in the company, valued at approximately $916,953. This trade represents a 36.63 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Francisco Leon sold 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.18, for a total transaction of $368,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 166,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,181,437.26. This trade represents a 4.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 26,270 shares of company stock worth $1,387,778 over the last ninety days. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of California Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of CRC. Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in California Resources by 44.7% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 71,693 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,950,000 after purchasing an additional 22,150 shares during the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its holdings in California Resources by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 13,937 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $768,000 after buying an additional 967 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of California Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $4,847,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lifted its holdings in shares of California Resources by 153.1% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 24,625 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,326,000 after acquiring an additional 14,896 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of California Resources by 4.4% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,100,283 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $446,326,000 after acquiring an additional 344,043 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.79% of the company’s stock.

About California Resources

California Resources Corporation operates as an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production, and carbon management company in the United States. The company explores, produces, 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.