Merit Financial Group LLC Has $1.04 Million Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Merit Financial Group LLC lessened its holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 34.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,977 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 4,682 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,042,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in COP. Solutions 4 Wealth Ltd purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the 4th quarter valued at about $428,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 28.4% in the 4th quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 24,489 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,842,000 after buying an additional 5,422 shares during the last quarter. Summit Global Investments increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 38.9% in the 4th quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 6,295 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $731,000 after buying an additional 1,763 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 1,649,718 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $191,481,000 after buying an additional 56,782 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 357,411 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $41,485,000 after buying an additional 6,755 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were 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 owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $853,669.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were 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 owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $853,669.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 44,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 700,775 shares of company stock valued at $87,615,169. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on COP. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho restated a “neutral” rating and set a $139.00 price target (up previously from $132.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.76.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $122.23 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $123.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $117.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.21. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $95.81 and a one year high of $135.18. The company has a market cap of $143.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.84, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.25.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced 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. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 18.40% and a return on equity of 20.85%. The firm had revenue of $15.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.71 EPS. Analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 9.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 10th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.27%.

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.