Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ) Q1 2025 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Achieved record Q1 2025 production of 1,582,348 BOE/d, including record liquids and natural gas output, driven by operational excellence, efficiency, and recent acquisitions.

• Oil Sands mining and upgrading assets delivered record SCO production, up 34% year-over-year, supported by reliability enhancements and debottlenecking projects, with operating costs at $21.88/bbl.

• Strong integration of Duvernay assets acquired in December 2024 contributed to production growth and cost reductions.

• Reduced 2025 capital budget by $100 million to $6.05 billion due to operational efficiencies, with no impact on planned activities or production targets.

• Returned $1.7 billion to shareholders in Q1 2025 through $1.2 billion in dividends and $500 million in share repurchases, and increased quarterly dividend by 4%.

Financial highlights

• Adjusted funds flow reached $4.53 billion and adjusted net earnings were $2.44 billion in Q1 2025, with net earnings of $2.46 billion.

• Free cash flow for Q1 2025 was $1.86 billion after dividends, capital expenditures, and abandonment costs.

• Net debt reduced by $1.4 billion during the quarter; debt to EBITDA at 1x and debt to book capital at 30%.

• Liquidity stood at $5.1 billion as of March 31, 2025, including undrawn facilities and cash.

• EPS (basic) was $1.17, and adjusted EPS (basic) was $1.16, both up from Q1 2024.

Outlook and guidance

• 2025 capital budget set at $6.05 billion, excluding abandonments, with no change to production guidance.

• Duvernay assets expected to achieve 2025 budget production of ~60,000 BOE/d, with ongoing cost and efficiency improvements.

• Maintenance capital and dividend breakeven WTI price remains in the low to mid-US$40/bbl range.

• Anticipates closing the Shell swap by end of Q2 2025, which may raise volume guidance.

• Planned AOSP turnaround in Q2 2025 to impact annual production by ~31,000 bbl/d.