Traders Purchase High Volume of Call Options on California Resources (NYSE:CRC)

California Resources Co. (NYSE:CRC) saw some unusual options trading on Friday. Stock investors purchased 2,880 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 393% compared to the typical daily volume of 584 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Noelle M. Repetti sold 8,770 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.75, for a total transaction of $488,927.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 8,531 shares in the company, valued at $475,603.25. The trade was a 50.69 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Francisco Leon sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 5th. The stock was 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 4.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 26,270 shares of company stock worth $1,387,778. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of California Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of California Resources by 61.5% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 974 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in California Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at $70,000. KBC Group NV increased its stake in California Resources by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,910 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 431 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in California Resources by 9.4% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,224 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $169,000 after buying an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc bought a new position in shares of California Resources in the third quarter valued at $209,000. 97.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on CRC shares. UBS Group began coverage on shares of California Resources in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen raised their target price on California Resources from $65.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded California Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 16th. Stephens initiated coverage on California Resources in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $73.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of California Resources in a report on Monday, August 12th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.40.

California Resources Price Performance

Shares of CRC opened at $59.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a PE ratio of 9.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.98. California Resources has a 52-week low of $43.09 and a 52-week high of $60.41. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $54.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $51.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 0.97.

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. The company had revenue of $1.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $973.13 million. California Resources had a net margin of 17.43% and a return on equity of 12.16%. California Resources’s quarterly revenue was up 194.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.02 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that California Resources will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

California Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be paid a $0.3875 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $1.55 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. California Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 24.41%.

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.