Moran Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Moran Wealth Management LLC cut its holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,710 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 93 shares during the quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $706,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of COP. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 35.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,192,580 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $4,097,473,000 after purchasing an additional 8,479,963 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 10,634.2% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,205,666 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $126,933,000 after buying an additional 1,194,434 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 19.3% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,811,289 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $717,093,000 after buying an additional 1,101,685 shares in the last quarter. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at $60,050,000. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the first quarter worth $66,495,000. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

COP opened at $111.71 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $101.29 and a 12-month high of $135.18. The company has a market cap of $128.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.28, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s 50 day moving average is $108.74 and its 200 day moving average is $111.48.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 7.8 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 37.10%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $126.00 price target (down previously from $139.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, October 11th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $137.63.

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.