Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Boosts Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 12.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 47,647 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,096 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $4,725,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 121,826,062 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $12,081,491,000 after buying an additional 12,751,120 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 19.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 66,928,793 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $7,046,263,000 after acquiring an additional 10,663,093 shares in the last quarter. 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 acquiring an additional 5,240,016 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,733,928 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,601,639,000 after purchasing an additional 924,289 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 13,780,782 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,366,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,324,771 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $102.44 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $99.12 and its 200 day moving average is $103.31. The company has a market cap of $130.34 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $86.81 and a 1 year high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 40.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 target price on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Raymond James downgraded ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $157.00 to $124.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.05.

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.