MONECO Advisors LLC Grows Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

MONECO Advisors LLC lifted its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 32.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,173 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,261 shares during the period. MONECO Advisors LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $600,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 7,589 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $881,000 after acquiring an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Pekin Hardy Strauss Inc. now owns 12,796 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,485,000 after buying an additional 500 shares in the last quarter. Certuity LLC increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 175.4% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 11,491 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,334,000 after buying an additional 7,318 shares in the last quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 8,047 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $934,000 after buying an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 32,228 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,741,000 after buying an additional 687 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In related news, EVP Nicholas G. Olds sold 12,150 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.44, for a total transaction of $1,536,246.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,522 shares in the company, valued at $1,836,161.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at $853,669.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nicholas G. Olds sold 12,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.44, for a total value of $1,536,246.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 14,522 shares in the company, valued at $1,836,161.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 700,775 shares of company stock worth $87,615,169. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

COP stock opened at $125.00 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $147.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.24. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $95.70 and a 1 year high of $135.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $123.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $117.67.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.32. The firm had revenue of $15.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.47 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 9.57 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 19th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.50%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 25.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $141.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays assumed coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $158.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.65.

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.