ConocoPhillips $COP Shares Acquired by Atwood & Palmer Inc.

Atwood & Palmer Inc. lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 723.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,535 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 4,863 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $693,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Artemis Investment Management LLP bought a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $117,411,000. Aletheian Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter valued at approximately $232,000. Titleist Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 34.9% during the third quarter. Titleist Asset Management LLC now owns 4,488 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 1,161 shares during the period. Apella Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 83.4% in the third quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 19,966 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,499,000 after purchasing an additional 9,078 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 70.6% in the third quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 15,405 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,928,000 after purchasing an additional 6,377 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Andrew Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,296,493.95. This trade represents a 49.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on COP. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $130.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $155.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Roth Capital raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $124.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $143.29.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

NYSE:COP traded up $4.40 on Thursday, reaching $134.24. The stock had a trading volume of 6,070,845 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,134,886. The company has a market capitalization of $161.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.24. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $85.57 and a 1-year high of $141.62. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $129.08 and a 200-day moving average price of $121.91.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.79 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 14.22% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.42 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 44.44%.

More ConocoPhillips News

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oil prices rose on supply concerns. Crude prices gained amid worries about Middle East shipping routes and a larger-than-expected decline in U.S. crude inventories. A stronger commodity backdrop typically supports ConocoPhillips’ realized prices, cash flow and earnings. ConocoPhillips gains as oil prices jump on supply fears
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded COP to “Strong Buy.” The upgrade reflects ConocoPhillips’ earnings-surprise history and what Zacks describes as favorable conditions for another quarterly earnings beat. The company’s latest reported quarter exceeded both earnings and revenue expectations, while full-year guidance was reaffirmed. Will ConocoPhillips Beat Estimates Again in Its Next Earnings Report?
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional interest provided additional support. Worth Asset Management initiated a position, while recent filings showed share additions by several large investors, including JPMorgan, BlackRock, T. Rowe Price and Charles Schwab Investment Management. Analysts tracked by Quiver Quantitative have issued buy or overweight ratings, with a reported median price target of $143.
• Positive Sentiment: Long-term LNG exposure remains a potential catalyst. ConocoPhillips agreed to purchase 1 million metric tons of LNG annually from Venture Global beginning in 2030 under a 20-year agreement. The deal expands its long-term natural-gas exposure, although the financial benefit is several years away. ConocoPhillips Could Be 11% Undervalued Following New 20 Year LNG Deal
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider activity was mixed for investors. Three insiders sold shares during the past six months, with no reported open-market purchases. These sales may raise a modest caution flag, but they do not necessarily indicate a change in the company’s operating outlook.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in finding, developing and producing crude oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids and liquefied natural gas. Unlike integrated energy companies, ConocoPhillips focuses primarily on upstream activities rather than refining and retail fuel operations.

The company has a diversified portfolio of assets in major producing regions, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Norway and Qatar. Its U.S. operations include oil and gas developments in Alaska and the Lower 48 states, while its international portfolio includes conventional and offshore projects.