ConocoPhillips $COP Shares Acquired by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 4.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,038,675 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 648,432 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 1.22% of ConocoPhillips worth $1,407,770,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,331,176 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $220,506,000 after acquiring an additional 298,245 shares in the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 8.7% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 1,996,426 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $188,842,000 after purchasing an additional 160,410 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 31.2% in the 4th quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 86,171 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $8,067,000 after buying an additional 20,501 shares in the last quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter worth $1,892,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 155,662 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $14,572,000 after buying an additional 14,833 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 34,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.68, for a total transaction of $4,128,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 17,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,090,689.92. This trade represents a 66.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 2,654 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.68, for a total transaction of $317,630.72. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 5,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $677,747.84. This trade represents a 31.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 686,391 shares of company stock worth $87,590,752 in the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $149.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $160.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.48.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $117.10 on Monday. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $85.57 and a fifty-two week high of $135.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.08 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $109.58. The company has a market cap of $142.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 0.11.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.17. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The company had revenue of $15.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. ConocoPhillips’s revenue was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 10.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.05%.

About ConocoPhillips

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.