Cerity Partners LLC Increases Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 26.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 337,878 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 70,549 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $33,808,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of COP. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 11.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 121,826,062 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $12,081,491,000 after buying an additional 12,751,120 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 13.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,131,288 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,792,521,000 after purchasing an additional 3,397,360 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.4% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 14,420,058 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,430,034,000 after purchasing an additional 862,707 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position 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 worth $1,366,640,000 after purchasing an additional 1,324,771 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 17.8% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,358,331 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $828,896,000 after buying an additional 1,261,881 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP opened at $82.58 on Wednesday. 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 company has a market cap of $104.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.83. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.44 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $102.55. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $81.27 and a 12-month high of $135.18.

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

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.78%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James lowered ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $157.00 to $124.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Mizuho raised ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $131.84.

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.