Wright Investors Service Inc. Lowers Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Wright Investors Service Inc. trimmed its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 6.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,523 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 836 shares during the period. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,337,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. West Branch Capital LLC grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 87.8% in the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. RVW Wealth LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 63.1% in the 3rd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 287 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock traded down $0.07 during trading on Thursday, hitting $128.26. The stock had a trading volume of 882,051 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,416,125. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $119.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $117.01. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $95.70 and a 1-year high of $135.18. The stock has a market cap of $150.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.43.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $15.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.47 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.71 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were issued a $0.78 dividend. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.43%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 25.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.32, for a total value of $5,574,064.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 44,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.32, for a total transaction of $5,574,064.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 44,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total value of $502,781.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 700,775 shares of company stock worth $87,615,169 in the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on COP. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $139.00 target price (up previously from $132.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Truist Financial reduced their target price on ConocoPhillips from $173.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 5th. UBS Group raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Raymond James reduced their target price on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $158.00 target price for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.00.

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.