Guinness Asset Management LTD Trims Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Guinness Asset Management LTD cut its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 13.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 139,674 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 21,060 shares during the period. Guinness Asset Management LTD’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $13,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 80.5% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 343 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $120.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target for the company. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $136.00.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $105.76 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.30. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $94.23 and a fifty-two week high of $135.18. The company has a market cap of $121.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.19.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.16 EPS. ConocoPhillips’s quarterly revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.10%.

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.