Stephens Inc. AR Raises Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Stephens Inc. AR raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 60,998 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $6,049,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Albion Financial Group UT boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 876.9% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 80.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 343 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In other news, Director R A. Walker purchased 10,400 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,716,400. The trade was a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,061,205. The trade was a 13.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE:COP opened at $99.39 on Tuesday. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $94.23 and a one year high of $135.18. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $101.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $106.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $114.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.76, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.16.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is presently 40.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James cut ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $157.00 to $124.00 in a research note on Monday. Barclays lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $120.00 to $123.00 in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Two investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.72.

ConocoPhillips 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.