Sciencast Management LP Raises Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Sciencast Management LP increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 56.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 30,667 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,027 shares during the quarter. ConocoPhillips makes up about 0.8% of Sciencast Management LP’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Sciencast Management LP’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $3,041,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 42.7% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 103,553 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $10,902,000 after purchasing an additional 31,011 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 59.8% during the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,166 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,901,000 after acquiring an additional 7,174 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 8,855 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $878,000 after buying an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.9% in the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,489,514 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $262,094,000 after purchasing an additional 46,621 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,096,450 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $747,114,000 after purchasing an additional 153,944 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on COP shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $132.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Truist Financial raised their price target on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.05.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $102.05 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $86.81 and a one year high of $135.18. The company has a market cap of $129.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.10, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $103.45.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. Research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.05%.

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.