Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. Raises Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,463 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 669 shares during the quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $839,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,641,970 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $162,834,000 after acquiring an additional 167,700 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 483,810 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $47,979,000 after acquiring an additional 46,474 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter worth about $78,000. WBH Advisory Inc. lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 15.1% in the fourth quarter. WBH Advisory Inc. now owns 3,170 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $314,000 after acquiring an additional 415 shares during the period. Finally, JFS Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 106.5% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,361 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $135,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP opened at $96.39 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $100.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $105.73. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $94.23 and a one year high of $135.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market cap of $110.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.18.

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 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, research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.05%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,716,400. This trade represents a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on COP shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $120.00 to $123.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $133.56.

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.