Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. Decreases Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 16.4% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 6,254 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 1,230 shares during the quarter. Mitchell Mcleod Pugh & Williams Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Cypress Capital Group increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.5% in the third quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 18,790 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,978,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,125 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $224,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 3,132 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 10,001 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,053,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.5% in the third quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 4,202 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $442,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director Arjun N. Murti purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,716,400. The trade was a 37.68 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

NYSE:COP opened at $105.76 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $121.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $94.23 and a 52 week high of $135.18. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $103.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.43.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. ConocoPhillips’s revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $120.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $136.00.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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.