ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Sold by Wedbush Securities Inc.

Wedbush Securities Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,529 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 236 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,135,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. IHT Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 36.4% in the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,276 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $985,000 after acquiring an additional 2,473 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 794,043 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $83,596,000 after purchasing an additional 2,050 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 164.8% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 59,776 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $6,293,000 after purchasing an additional 37,201 shares in the last quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 22.6% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 38,690 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $4,073,000 after buying an additional 7,131 shares during the period. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.1% during the third quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,335 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,562,000 after buying an additional 2,033 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $132.95.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP opened at $86.18 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $108.95 billion, a PE ratio of 11.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $85.55 and a one year high of $135.18. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $98.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $103.10.

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

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 40.05%.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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.