Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Purchases New Shares in ConocoPhillips $COP

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 29,803 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $3,098,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COP. Burk Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 2nd quarter worth $54,000. True Freedom Investing LLC bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at about $10,536,000. LM Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at about $277,000. Haverford Trust Co purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter worth about $1,987,000. Finally, First Nebraska Trust Co purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter worth about $7,058,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total transaction of $1,282,168.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,296,493.95. This represents a 49.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP stock opened at $133.37 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $160.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.54. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $85.57 and a 52 week high of $135.88. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $115.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $117.97.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.34. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 14.22% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The firm had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 10.46 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $130.00 target price on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and issued a $168.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.29.

ConocoPhillips Profile

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is a Houston-based international energy company focused on exploration and production of oil and natural gas. Formed in 2002 through the merger of Conoco Inc and Phillips Petroleum Company, the firm operates as an independent upstream company that explores for, develops and produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids across a portfolio of global assets.

The company’s activities span conventional and unconventional resources and include onshore and offshore operations in multiple regions around the world.