California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) Sees Large Growth in Short Interest

California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) saw a large increase in short interest in September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 6,160,000 shares, an increase of 12.0% from the September 15th total of 5,500,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 749,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 8.2 days. Currently, 8.4% of the company’s stock are short sold.

California Resources Price Performance

Shares of California Resources stock traded down $0.42 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $51.48. The company had a trading volume of 76,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 865,872. The company has a market capitalization of $3.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 2.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $50.96. California Resources has a 1-year low of $43.09 and a 1-year high of $57.88.

California Resources (NYSE:CRC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by ($0.36). California Resources had a net margin of 7.61% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The company had revenue of $514.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $477.07 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.53 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that California Resources will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current year.

California Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 30th were paid a $0.3875 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 30th. This is a boost from California Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.31. This represents a $1.55 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 44.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Noelle M. Repetti sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total value of $530,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 17,301 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $916,953. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Francisco Leon sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.18, for a total value of $368,850.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 166,357 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,181,437.26. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Noelle M. Repetti sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.00, for a total transaction of $530,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 17,301 shares in the company, valued at $916,953. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CRC. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of California Resources by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,109 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $390,000 after buying an additional 253 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of California Resources by 61.5% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 974 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its position in California Resources by 1.3% in the second quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 32,300 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,719,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC increased its stake in California Resources by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. AlphaMark Advisors LLC now owns 6,658 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $349,000 after buying an additional 652 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp grew its holdings in shares of California Resources by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 56,452 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,111,000 after acquiring an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.79% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CRC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of California Resources in a research report on Monday, August 12th. TD Cowen began coverage on California Resources in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Barclays lifted their price objective on California Resources from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. UBS Group initiated coverage on California Resources in a report on Wednesday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 target price for the company. Finally, Bank of America raised California Resources from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $57.00 to $65.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, California Resources presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $64.75.

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.