California Resources Corp (CRC) AI Stock Analysis

• Market Cap: $4.22B
• Dividend Yield: 3.28%
• Average Volume (3M): 881.63K
• Price to Earnings (P/E): 8.6
• Beta (1Y): 0.98
• Revenue Growth: 41.68%
• EPS Growth: 53.13%
• Country: US
• Employees: 1,550
• Sector: Energy
• Sector Strength: 72
• Industry: Oil & Gas Exploration & Production
• EPS (TTM): 1.07
• Shares Outstanding: 89,175,030
• 10 Day Avg. Volume: 893,359
• 30 Day Avg. Volume: 881,634
• PEG Ratio: -0.90
• Price to Book (P/B): 1.76
• Price to Sales (P/S): 0.00
• P/FCF Ratio: 4.85
• Enterprise Value/Market Cap: 0.86
• Enterprise Value/Revenue: 0.30
• Enterprise Value/Gross Profit: 1.27
• Enterprise Value/Ebitda: 0.86
• 1Y Price Target: $55.89
• Price Target Upside: 18.24% Upside
• Rating Consensus: Strong Buy
• Number of Analyst Covering: 10

• Rating: 75 Outperform
• Price Target: $48.00 ▲(1.54%Upside)

CRC's overall stock score reflects a strong earnings call performance and attractive valuation, which are the primary drivers. Financial performance is solid but impacted by revenue and cash flow volatility. Technical analysis indicates moderate positive momentum, while corporate events support strategic growth efforts.

Positive Factors

Cost Efficiency

CRC's EBITDAX was 13% above consensus driven by operating cost beats and Capex 15% below the Street.

Synergies

CRC has realized $173mm in synergies from the Aera merger, which indicates strong progress towards cost efficiency.

Negative Factors

Market Conditions

An oversupplied oil market is anticipated, which could negatively impact CRC's performance due to its sensitivity to oil prices.

Regulatory Challenges

CRC faces challenges due to regulatory uncertainty, affecting its oil and gas permit approvals and delaying its carbon capture project's volume ramp-up.

California Resources Corp Business Overview & Revenue Model

Company Description

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. As of December 31, 2021, it had interests in approximately 1.9 million net mineral acres with proved reserves totaled an estimated 480 million barrels of oil equivalent. The company also engages in the generation and sale of electricity to the local utility and the grid. The company was incorporated in 2014 and is based in Santa Clarita, California.

How the Company Makes Money

California Resources Corporation generates revenue primarily through the exploration, development, and production of oil and natural gas. The company's key revenue streams include the sale of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids extracted from its various operations across California. CRC's financial performance is significantly influenced by factors such as commodity prices, production volumes, and operational efficiencies. The company may also engage in strategic partnerships and joint ventures to optimize resource development and enhance profitability. Additionally, CRC focuses on cost management and technological advancements to improve its competitive edge in the energy sector.

California Resources Corp Financial Statement Overview

Summary

CRC's financial performance shows strengths in profitability metrics and improved debt management. However, revenue growth inconsistency and cash flow fluctuations present challenges. The strong EBITDA margins and leverage ratio improvements are positive, yet vigilance is needed for revenue volatility.

Income Statement

California Resources Corp (CRC) has shown a mixed performance in recent years. The gross profit margin is robust, thanks to the significant reduction in cost of goods sold. However, the net profit margin has been volatile, primarily due to fluctuations in EBIT and net income. Revenue growth has been inconsistent, with significant declines in certain years, indicating potential instability. Despite these fluctuations, EBITDA margins remain strong, reflecting effective cost management.

Balance Sheet

CRC's balance sheet shows improvement in debt management, with a decreasing trend in the debt-to-equity ratio, indicating reduced leverage risk. The return on equity (ROE) is strong, showcasing effective use of shareholder funds. However, the equity ratio indicates moderate reliance on equity financing, which may expose the company to some risk if market conditions worsen. Overall, the balance sheet reflects a cautious but improving financial position.

Cash Flow

The cash flow analysis reveals solid operating cash flow, consistently covering net income, indicating good cash generation from operations. Free cash flow growth has shown positive trends, although it fluctuates due to capital expenditures. The operating cash flow to net income ratio highlights efficiency in converting income into cash. While cash flows are generally healthy, reliance on financing activities in certain periods suggests potential liquidity management challenges.

Breakdown
TTM	Dec 2024	Dec 2023	Dec 2022	Dec 2021	Dec 2020
Income Statement		Total Revenue
3.69B	2.93B	2.81B	3.26B	2.56B	1.61B
	Gross Profit
2.88B	2.25B	1.41B	1.78B	1.27B	308.00M
	EBIT
883.00M	620.00M	808.00M	1.11B	658.00M	-1.89B
	EBITDA
1.24B	1.08B	1.07B	1.31B	871.00M	2.45B
	Net Income Common Stockholders
501.00M	376.00M	564.00M	524.00M	612.00M	3.33B
Balance Sheet		Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments
214.00M	372.00M	496.00M	307.00M	305.00M	28.00M
	Total Assets
6.83B	7.13B	4.00B	3.97B	3.85B	3.07B
	Total Debt
1.10B	1.22B	610.00M	662.00M	637.00M	639.00M
	Net Debt
882.00M	851.00M	114.00M	355.00M	332.00M	611.00M
	Total Liabilities
3.31B	3.60B	1.78B	2.10B	2.16B	1.89B
	Stockholders Equity
3.52B	3.54B	2.22B	1.86B	1.69B	1.18B
Cash Flow		Free Cash Flow
678.00M	610.00M	468.00M	678.00M	466.00M	59.00M
	Operating Cash Flow
712.00M	610.00M	653.00M	690.00M	660.00M	106.00M
	Investing Cash Flow
-1.11B	-1.08B	-175.00M	-317.00M	-161.00M	-37.00M
	Financing Cash Flow
206.00M	343.00M	-289.00M	-371.00M	-222.00M	-58.00M

California Resources Corp Technical Analysis

• Technical Analysis Sentiment: Positive
• Last Price: 47.27
• 50DMA: Positive
• 100DMA: Positive
• 200DMA: Positive
• MACD: Negative
• RSI: Negative
• STOCH: Negative

Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For CRC, the sentiment is Positive. The current price of 47.27 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 43.89, above the 50-day MA of 39.37, and above the 200-day MA of 47.24, indicating a bullish trend. The MACD of 1.74 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 72.30 is Negative, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 86.01 is Negative, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Positive sentiment for CRC.

California Resources Corp Peers Comparison

Name	Overall Rating	Market Cap	P/E Ratio	ROE	Dividend Yield	Revenue Growth	EPS Growth
VIST	79 Outperform	$5.02B	10.58	32.69%	―	54.19%	37.69%
CRC	75 Outperform	$4.22B	8.57	17.86%	3.28%	41.68%	53.13%
MUR	74 Outperform	$3.63B	9.76	7.54%	5.11%	-14.90%	-27.53%
SM	72 Outperform	$3.23B	3.96	20.28%	2.83%	26.04%	11.96%
BSM	70 Outperform	$2.95B	15.21	19.93%	10.78%	-12.71%	-39.85%
GPOR	63 Neutral	$3.48B	16.69	-16.01%	―	10.44%	-139.05%
Sector *	58 Neutral	$7.56B	3.50	-4.45%	10.15%	0.79%	-49.51%

California Resources Corp Corporate Events

California Resources Corp Elects Directors and Ratifies Auditor

At its 2025 Annual Meeting on May 2, California Resources Corporation elected nine directors and ratified KPMG LLP as its independent auditor for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2025. The company also approved executive officer compensation. In the first quarter of 2025, California Resources reported a net income of $115 million and returned $258 million to stakeholders. The company maintained steady production levels and is on track to achieve $185 million in merger synergies by the end of 2025. With a focus on carbon capture and storage, California Resources aims to inject CO₂ at its Elk Hills facility by year-end, reinforcing its strategy to generate sustainable free cash flow and support California’s decarbonization goals.