Stockchase Opinions

Rebecca Teltscher Canadian Natural Rsrcs CNQ-T TOP PICK May 15, 2025

She'd "top pick" this one forever at these prices. A no-brainer. The premier Canadian oil stock. Rare opportunity to own a premium asset at a discount. Oil price may get weaker as international supply comes on. Still makes $$ with a low commodity price. Good mix between oil and gas.

Best-in-class assets with low decline rate overall of ~11%. Strong culture of maximizing shareholder value through buybacks and dividend increases. Yield is 5.45%, and dividend increases multiple times a year.

(Analysts’ price target is $50.94)
$43.150

Stock price when the opinion was issued

oil gas
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DON'T BUY

Unfortunately, still remains in a broader downtrend. Lower highs, lower lows. Positive news is that looks to be testing upper end of the range. If it could get through $43-44, he'd be more constructive. Cautious.

BUY

It is very well managed and has solid properties. He is bullish on oil and even more on natural gas. Although it is entering a period of seasonal weakness it is a long term buy.

WAIT

Oil's been under pressure, and so have energy stocks, due to concerns about global economy. All these names are in a downswing, but you're getting a pretty nice dividend here of over 5%. 200-day MA is falling, and price is just below that, so may be important inflection point to see if it breaks above. If so, would be a positive technical indicator.

Potential geopolitical rumblings around the world could put push oil price up, but that's just speculation. Sentiment on energy is rather weak. OPEC's not helping by increasing production. Valuation is very cheap compared to last 10 years and to the indices; but that doesn't mean to jump in there right now. Need more evidence of an upswing by market understanding that the global economy is not going to fall off a cliff.

WAIT

Follows this name quite closely. His preferred name in the space. Valuation's come up in the short term on geopolitical events. Gushes cash, and that's tied to its dividend policy. Opportunistic acquisitions. Wait. Yield is 5.1%.

BUY

Impossible to try to predict the price of oil, so he looks for low-cost, high-quality producers. When WTI was trading at $39 back in 2022, this name was still free-cashflow positive. 

BUY

Active in natural gas, traditional oil, and heavy oil. Extremely well run. Another beneficiary should Ottawa develop a pragmatic attitude toward the Canadian oil and gas industry. Greatly aided by exports of LNG on the West Coast.

BUY
Dividend choice for an 18-year-old to hold forever.

Young investors don't care as much about dividend stocks, but they're really important. It's like collecting rent, instead of making money only once you sell a stock. The earlier they start, the more they reap the benefit of the compounding effect that takes place after 10, 20, 30 years of investing. Compounding is such a powerful tool.

It's hard to pick just one, as she likes a diversified portfolio. This name would be her first choice, based on today's valuation. Premium assets, low decline rate. Largest oil & gas company in Canada. Phenomenal job giving money back to shareholders via dividends and buybacks. Starting 2026, 100% of free cashflow will be returned to shareholders.

BUY

A couple of years ago energy was the place you had to be, and stocks have been sliding since then. Tariffs are slowing things down and gumming up global supply chains. OPEC wants to increase production. With the oil price where it is, there isn't a lot of drilling going on.

There's too much oil right now going into the fall, but oil has a way of tightening itself up. If oil stays lower for longer, there's more drive to get that price higher later. This is the stock in Canada you want to own for sector exposure, sit and collect the dividend, and be there for when the oil price goes higher. Doesn't seem as though there's any catalyst for that to happen in the next 6 months. Yield is ~5%.

WAIT

All the oil producers are stuck in no-man's land. He's out of oil stocks. Doesn't mind a sideways pattern, but this looks to be in a gentle downtrend. Doesn't know he'd buy it yet, wait for the downtrend to end.

TOP PICK

About 70% oil, 30% natural gas. That gives you diversification. Trades ~12x PE. Good value, and will continue to grow. Buying back a lot of stock. Exporting energy to Europe will benefit any NA energy producer. Yield is 5.38%.

Unless there's a big recession that reduces demand, doesn't see oil getting too far below $60 (which is where it makes money). A lot of the US producers can't make $$ much below $60, so that provides a floor. So he's not too worried about the price of oil.

(Analysts’ price target is $52.36)