Delta Financial Group Inc. Acquires 380 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Delta Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 8.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,100 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 380 shares during the period. Delta Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $506,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COP. State Street Corp increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 19.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 66,928,793 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $7,046,263,000 after purchasing an additional 10,663,093 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 20.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,161,897 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,280,725,000 after purchasing an additional 5,240,016 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 59.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,456,011 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,311,369,000 after purchasing an additional 4,656,040 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 5,422.3% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,587,729 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $482,996,000 after purchasing an additional 4,504,653 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 401.5% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,423,611 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $438,690,000 after purchasing an additional 3,541,504 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

NYSE COP opened at $97.90 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.57, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.18. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $94.23 and a twelve month high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $100.11 and a 200 day moving average of $105.44.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 16.23%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 40.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Susquehanna lifted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays cut their price target on ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho upgraded ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $132.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.