Plato Investment Management Ltd Boosts Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Plato Investment Management Ltd lifted its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 18.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,619 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 4,134 shares during the quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,800,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of COP. EP Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 19.1% in the first quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 28,601 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,640,000 after purchasing an additional 4,578 shares during the period. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,021,000. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 83.8% during the 2nd quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 16,427 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,879,000 after acquiring an additional 7,490 shares during the last quarter. TCW Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 37.8% during the second quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 30,026 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,434,000 after purchasing an additional 8,231 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Doheny Asset Management CA bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the second quarter worth approximately $815,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock opened at $111.82 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $107.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.30, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.21. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $101.29 and a 12-month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. ConocoPhillips’s quarterly revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.16 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 37.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on COP. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $145.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank dropped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com lowered ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $126.00 target price (down previously from $139.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, October 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.47.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and natural gas liquids in the United States, Canada, China, Libya, Malaysia, Norway, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's portfolio includes unconventional plays in North America; conventional assets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia; global LNG developments; oil sands assets in Canada; and an inventory of global exploration prospects.