Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Competitiveness
A competitive positioning analysis and financial ratio benchmarking of Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNQ) against its publicly traded competitors: sales growth, net income, profitability, valuation and market share, plus each peer's market capitalization, revenue, income and employees. Free below: the top 5 peers. Subscriber access adds the full competitor list and CSV downloads.
Key Findings: Canadian Natural Resources Limited vs Its Competitors
- TTM: Trailing 12-month revenue of 29,692M vs 139,419M combined for tracked competitors (17.6% combined share).
- Trending: Latest-quarter revenue run-rate is accelerating (+300.0% annualized vs trailing 12 months), vs accelerating (+162.7%) for its tracked peer group.
- Growth: Canadian Natural Resources Limited generated 8.7% revenue growth year over year in Q4 2025, vs -6.4% for its tracked competitors combined.
- Profitability: Its 27.9% net margin compares with 9.7% for the peer group.
- Scale: Canadian Natural Resources Limited ranks #3 of 134 companies by market capitalization in the Oil And Gas Production industry, holding 6.9% of industry market cap.
- Peer revenue share: Canadian Natural Resources Limited accounted for 24.5% of combined revenue among its tracked peer group, up from 21.8% a year earlier.
- Peer differentiation: Revenue per employee of $4.43M compares with $3.76M for the peer group (1.2x).
Every figure above is sourced and cited in detail further down this page (Market Structure, Profitability & Cost Structure, Productivity vs Peers).
CNQ Sales vs. its Competitors, Q4 2025
Canadian Natural Resources Limited reported revenue growth of 8.71 % year on year in Q4 2025, above its competitors' combined revenue change of -6.43 %.
With a net margin of 27.91 %, Canadian Natural Resources Limited achieved higher profitability than its competitors (9.65 %).
Canadian Natural Resources Limited generated 24.49 % of the combined sales of its peer group, up from 21.82 % a year earlier.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited vs. its Competitors, Q4 2025
Revenue growth, year on year
Net income growth, year on year
Net margin
Revenue run-rate vs trailing 12 months
TTM net margin
TTM = trailing twelve months. Run-rate annualizes the latest quarter (×4) and compares it to TTM. In millions of $. High-Confidence Competitors are named as a competitor directly in an SEC filing; Similar-Size Competitors are the closest peers by market-cap rank within the same industry; Similar Growth & Profitability Competitors are the closest peers by combined revenue growth, operating margin and ROIC, all independent of the competitor list.
TTM revenue, latest-quarter run-rate and net income/margin benchmarked across Canadian Natural Resources Limited and its 4 competitor groupings. Available under Commercial License.
| Entity | TTM Revenue | Rev Run-rate vs TTM |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | $12,345M | +12.3% · Accelerating |
| Competitors combined | $12,345M | +12.3% · Accelerating |
| Similar-Size Competitors (7) | $12,345M | +12.3% · Accelerating |
| Similar Growth & Profitability (6) | $12,345M | +12.3% · Accelerating |
TTM revenue, run-rate and net margin benchmarking across Canadian Natural Resources Limited's competitor groups requires a Commercial License.
For context: the Oil And Gas Production industry grew revenue 3.3% year over year, combined, vs 8.7% for Canadian Natural Resources Limited. Canadian Natural Resources Limited's share of combined industry revenue moved from 1.91% to 2.01%, a gain of 0.10 percentage points.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Competitor Quality Breadth
Share of each group, trailing 12 months: profitable (net margin > 0), expanding (revenue growth > 0), growing faster than the industry's own median, and financially distressed (Piotroski F-Score of 2 or below).
| Entity | Profitable | Expanding | Above Industry Growth | Distressed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Competitors combined (10) | ||||
| Similar-Size Competitors (7) | ||||
| Similar Growth & Profitability (8) | 100.00 % (8 of 8) | 62.50 % (5 of 8) | 62.50 % (5 of 8) | 50.00 % (3 of 6) |
Source: CSIMarket API, trailing 12 months. Altman Z-Score is not shown here: it is not populated in the underlying data for any company. Percentages are of companies in each group that report the relevant metric, not of the full group size.
CNQ Stock Performance relative to its Competitors
CNQ Stock Performance relative to Similar-Size Competitors
CNQ Stock Performance relative to Similar Growth & Profitability Competitors
5 Best-Performing Tracked Competitors, Trailing 12 Months
| # | Competitor | TTM Share Price Return | vs U.S.A. 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cenovus Energy Inc | 282.9% | Outperformed |
| 2 | Suncor Energy inc | 282.9% | Outperformed |
| 3 | Imperial Oil Limited | 282.9% | Outperformed |
| 4 | Ovintiv Inc | 282.9% | Outperformed |
| 5 | Vermilion Energy inc | 282.9% | Outperformed |
TTM share price return and U.S.A. 500 outperformance for Canadian Natural Resources Limited's best-performing tracked competitors requires a Commercial License.
Source: CSIMarket API, trailing 12 months.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Comment on Competition and Industry Peers
Publicly Traded Peers of Canadian Natural Resources Limited
Revenue and income for trailing 12 months, in millions of $, except employees| Company | Market Cap | Revenues |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 98,958.23 | 29,691.69 |
| Suncor Energy inc | 82,362.20 | 37,771.46 |
| Imperial Oil Limited | 59,128.71 | 39,052.08 |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | 56,342.90 | 38,067.14 |
| Ppl Corporation | 24,668.21 | 9,312.00 |
| Ovintiv Inc | 16,584.18 | 9,758.00 |
| SUBTOTAL | 346,514.19 | 169,110.63 |
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Sources: Canadian Natural Resources Limited's official press releases and regulatory filings; CSIMarket.com's market research; and the financial filings and press releases of the other companies cited.
Updated on:
Focus of this report: publicly traded companies. Ten additional tables on Canadian Natural Resources Limited versus competitors, including market share analysis, are in the navigation menu under Competition. To download the tables, please subscribe.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Business Segment Mix vs Peers
Revenue by operating segment or division, as named and reported by each company. Segment names are the filer's own and are not standardized across companies. Do not assume a same-named or similarly-named segment is defined identically between two companies. Shares are of each company's own total revenue and are not required to sum to 100% (intersegment revenue, unallocated items).| Company | Largest Segment |
|---|---|
| Imperial Oil Limited | Upstream 42.18 % |
| Ovintiv Inc | USA Operations Excluding Intercompany Segment Transactions 58.94 % |
| Ckx Lands Inc | Surface Segment 77.69 % |
Source: operating segment revenue as reported in each company's SEC filings (10-K/10-Q), via the CSIMarket API, leaf-level reportable segments only (parent roll-up segments are excluded where sub-segments are separately disclosed).
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Productivity vs Peers Comparison
Revenue and income per employee, trailing 12 months, in $; market cap in millions of $| Company | Market Cap | Revenue / Employee | Income / Employee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 98,958 | 4,431,596 | 1,237,033 |
| Suncor Energy inc | 82,362 | 2,281,161 | 273,776 |
| Imperial Oil Limited | 59,129 | 7,810,415 | 619,602 |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | 56,343 | 19,033,568 | 1,505,190 |
| Ppl Corporation | 24,668 | 926,383 | 121,269 |
| Ovintiv Inc | 16,584 | 6,660,751 | 627,986 |
| PEERS TOTAL | 247,556 | 3,761,979 | 353,049 |
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Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Position in Industry Market Structure
Market-capitalization share and concentration across all 113 companies in Canadian Natural Resources Limited's industry classification, broader than the peer set above. Market cap in millions of $.Canadian Natural Resources Limited ranks #3 of 113 companies by market capitalization in its industry, holding 6.88 % of total industry market cap. The industry's Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) is 785, indicating a unconcentrated market structure (U.S. antitrust guidance: below 1,500 unconcentrated, 1,500 to 2,500 moderately concentrated, above 2,500 highly concentrated).
| Rank | Company | Market Cap | Industry Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shell Plc | 285,448 | 18.97 % |
| 2 | Totalenergies Se | 212,542 | 14.13 % |
| 3 | Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 103,568 | 6.88 % |
| 4 | Eni Spa | 95,130 | 6.32 % |
| 5 | Slb Limited | 1,234 | 5.2% |
| 6 | Eog Resources Inc | 1,234 | 5.2% |
| 7 | Occidental Petroleum Corporation | 1,234 | 5.2% |
| 8 | Cenovus Energy Inc | 1,234 | 5.2% |
| 9 | Diamondback Energy Inc | 1,234 | 5.2% |
| 10 | Devon Energy Corp | 1,234 | 5.2% |
Market cap and industry share for the rest of Canadian Natural Resources Limited's industry peers requires a Commercial License.
Source: CSIMarket API (daily market-structure computation) across CSIMarket's industry classification, market capitalization as of 2026-09-29.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Same-Size Peers & Stock Performance
Peers chosen by closeness in market-cap rank within the same industry classification (not the named-competitor list above). Trailing 12-month total return, 3-month price momentum, beta and Sharpe ratio vs the broad U.S. market.| Rank | Company | Market Cap | TTM Return |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shell Plc | 285,448 | 29.53 % |
| 2 | Totalenergies Se | 212,542 | 40.37 % |
| 3 | Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 103,568 | 43.73 % |
| 4 | Eni Spa | 1,234 | 12.3% |
| 5 | Slb Limited | 1,234 | 12.3% |
| 6 | Eog Resources Inc | 1,234 | 12.3% |
| 7 | Occidental Petroleum Corporation | 1,234 | 12.3% |
| 8 | Cenovus Energy Inc | 1,234 | 12.3% |
Market cap, return, momentum, beta and Sharpe ratio for the rest of Canadian Natural Resources Limited's same-size peers requires a Commercial License.
Source: CSIMarket API (daily market-structure computation); returns and risk metrics as of 2026-09-29. Beta and Sharpe ratio are versus the broad U.S. equity market, not this industry.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Profitability & Cost Structure
Trailing 12-month margins from SEC-filed financials. Operating margin is compared to the Oil And Gas Production industry median; gross margin, EBITDA margin and capital intensity are compared to the live industry average (165 companies). See the full Oil And Gas Production industry profitability benchmarks.| Metric | Company | Industry | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 0.00 % | 57.30 % (avg) | -57.3 pp |
| Operating Margin | 86.70 % | industry median | +75.4 pp |
| EBITDA Margin | 34.16 % | 11.81 % (avg) | +22.3 pp |
| Capital Intensity (Capex / Revenue) | - | 24.95 % (avg) | - |
Source: CSIMarket API, trailing 12 months. SG&A and R&D as a share of revenue have limited coverage as this data is backfilled and appear only where reported. Higher capital intensity is not inherently negative; it reflects the industry's asset requirements.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Valuation vs Competitive Position
Valuation multiples vs the Oil And Gas Production industry average (165 companies, excluding loss-making/negative-equity outliers), alongside returns on capital for context on whether a premium or discount lines up with measurably stronger or weaker returns. See the full Oil And Gas Production industry valuation benchmarks.| Metric | Company | Industry Average | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 6.3x | 15.8x | -9.5x |
| EV / EBITDA | - | 8.9x | - |
| P/B | - | 1.8x | - |
| Return on Equity | 24.39 % | industry aggregate | 12.61 % |
| Return on Invested Capital | 28.00 % | 5.38 % (avg) | 22.62 % |
Source: CSIMarket API, trailing 12 months. A valuation premium or discount is not, by itself, a judgment of over- or under-valuation. Compare it against the return and growth context shown elsewhere on this page.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Multi-Year Financial Trajectory
Fiscal-year revenue growth, operating margin, return on invested capital and P/E, as reported in SEC filings.| Metric | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue Growth | -15.31 % | -0.87 % | 8.71 % |
| Operating Margin | 92.06 % | 94.39 % | 86.70 % |
| Return on Invested Capital | 31.25 % | 31.05 % | 28.00 % |
| P/E | 8.7x | 11.8x | 6.3x |
Source: CSIMarket API, fiscal-year figures. P/E is this company's own historical ratio at each fiscal year end and can swing sharply around an earnings trough: that is real, not a data error.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Strategic Group Map
Every company in Canadian Natural Resources Limited's industry and named-competitor list, plotted by trailing 12-month revenue growth and operating margin. Canadian Natural Resources Limited is shown in red; its closest peers by combined growth, margin and ROIC (the Similar Growth & Profitability group above) are labeled.
Source: CSIMarket API, trailing 12 months. Extreme outlier values (from near-zero-revenue companies) are excluded from the plotted cloud but never from the highlighted company or its labeled peers.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's BCG Growth-Share Matrix
Relative market share (vs Canadian Natural Resources Limited's largest competitor by market cap) against industry revenue growth, using the standard textbook thresholds (1.0x share, 10% growth) a common framework, not a precision instrument.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited falls in the Dog quadrant: relative market share of 0.36x vs its largest competitor, in an industry growing revenue 0.1% (median, trailing 12 months).
Source: CSIMarket API (market-cap share and industry revenue growth). The 10% growth and 1.0x share lines are standard textbook thresholds, not derived from this industry's own distribution.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Competitive Forces (Porter's Five Forces)
Only the forces this data can support honestly are shown; the other three are marked as such rather than guessed.| Force | Assessment | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Competitive Rivalry | High | Industry HHI of 785 (see Industry Market Structure & Concentration above) |
| Supplier Power | Not covered on this page | See Canadian Natural Resources Limited's dedicated suppliers page for concentration and dependency data |
| Buyer Power | Not covered on this page | See Canadian Natural Resources Limited's dedicated customers page for concentration and dependency data |
| Threat of Substitutes | - | No systematic data source for cross-product substitution exists in this system; not estimated |
Note: this is a partial, data-grounded application of the framework, not a complete strategic assessment. Rivalry and barriers-to-entry readings are mechanical translations of the HHI and capital-intensity figures shown elsewhere on this page, not independent judgments.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Industry Attractiveness & Competitive Strength
A CSIMarket composite, not a standard field: each axis is an equal-weighted average of three factors already shown elsewhere on this page (industry growth, industry profitability and rivalry for attractiveness; relative market share, profitability and growth vs industry for strength). Disclosed as a designed methodology, not a precision measurement.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited falls in the Low attractiveness / Medium strength cell: Harvest.
Source: CSIMarket API, trailing 12 months. Each axis score is a simple 1(low)/2(medium)/3(high) average across its three inputs -- a transparent, disclosed simplification, not a validated academic scoring model.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's SWOT
Every point below is a fixed rule applied to a metric already shown elsewhere on this page (Market Structure, Profitability, Valuation, Run-Rate, Stock Performance, Quality Breadth) not an independent strategic assessment. A blank quadrant means no rule was met, not that none apply.Strengths
- Operating margin 75.4 points above the industry median.
- Return on equity 12.6 points above the industry aggregate.
- Latest-quarter revenue run-rate is accelerating (+300.0% annualized vs trailing 12 months).
- Outperforming the U.S.A. 500 over the trailing 12 months.
Weaknesses
- Low relative market share vs the industry leader (0.36x).
Opportunities
- Trades at a lower P/E than the industry average (6.3x vs 15.8x) despite a higher return on invested capital -- a possible re-rating opportunity.
- A meaningful share of tracked competitors (30.00 %) show financial-distress signals, a possible opening to gain share.
Threats
No rule matched.
Methodology: mechanical, rule-based SWOT. Each bullet reuses a figure already sourced and cited elsewhere on this page; nothing here is generated narrative or independent analyst judgment.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Financial Strength vs Peers Comparison
Quick ratio, working capital, debt to equity and asset turnover, trailing 12 months| Company | Quick Ratio | Working Capital | Debt / Equity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 0.04 | 0.47 | 0.63 |
| Suncor Energy inc | 0.21 | 0.81 | 0.23 |
| Imperial Oil Limited | 0.22 | 1.38 | 0.17 |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | 0.25 | 0.90 | 0.38 |
| Ppl Corporation | 0.20 | 0.80 | 1.30 |
| Ovintiv Inc | 0.07 | 0.62 | 0.46 |
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Quick ratio = cash / current liabilities; working capital ratio = current assets / current liabilities; asset turnover = revenue / total assets. Peers in the Blank Checks industry are excluded.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Revenue and Income Growth vs Peers
Quarterly revenue and net income growth, year over year and quarter over quarter| Company | Period | Revenue Y/Y | Income Y/Y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | Q4 2025 | +8.7 % | +77.2 % |
| Suncor Energy inc | Q4 2025 | -3.6 % | -1.6 % |
| Imperial Oil Limited | Q2 2026 | +35.4 % | +118.5 % |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | Q4 2025 | -8.4 % | +25.1 % |
| Ppl Corporation | Q1 2026 | +10.8 % | +9.2 % |
| Ovintiv Inc | Q2 2026 | +30.0 % | +48.5 % |
| PEERS TOTAL | +1.2 % | +36.3 % |
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Growth is shown only where both periods are positive. Peers in the Blank Checks industry are excluded.
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Peers' Costs of Sales and Capital Expenditures
Context for revenue growth: peer costs and capex, year over year and quarter over quarter| Company | Period | Costs Y/Y | Capex Y/Y |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | Q4 2025 | - | - |
| Suncor Energy inc | Q4 2025 | -5.6 % | - |
| Imperial Oil Limited | Q2 2026 | - | +1.7 % |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | Q4 2025 | - | - |
| Ppl Corporation | Q1 2026 | -3.2 % | +33.6 % |
| Ovintiv Inc | Q2 2026 | -16.4 % | +322.8 % |
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Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Returns and Turnover vs Peers
ROA, ROI and ROE (trailing 12 months), receivables and inventory turnover| Company | ROA | ROI | ROE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 11.78% | 14.30% | 24.39% |
| Suncor Energy inc | 6.58% | 8.86% | 13.11% |
| Imperial Oil Limited | 9.25% | 11.12% | 17.27% |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | 6.20% | 7.50% | 12.43% |
| Ppl Corporation | 2.74% | 3.62% | 8.32% |
| Ovintiv Inc | 4.52% | 4.91% | 8.27% |
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ROA = net income / total assets; ROI = net income / investments; ROE = net income / equity; turnover ratios use trailing 12 month revenue (receivables) and cost of sales (inventory).
Canadian Natural Resources Limited's Valuation vs Peers
P/E, price to sales, PEG, price to cash flow and price to book| Company | P/E | Price / Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canadian Natural Resources Limited | 9.14 | 3.33 |
| Suncor Energy inc | 13.92 | 2.18 |
| Imperial Oil Limited | 16.77 | 1.51 |
| Cenovus Energy Inc | 14.40 | 1.48 |
| Ppl Corporation | 19.87 | 2.65 |
| Ovintiv Inc | 16.91 | 1.70 |
| PEERS AVERAGE | 16.21 | 2.05 |
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P/E = price / diluted EPS (trailing 12 months); PEG = P/E divided by EPS growth; the average row divides the peers' combined market cap by their combined income, sales, cash flow and equity.