Independent Advisor Alliance Cuts Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Independent Advisor Alliance lessened its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 88,961 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 2,699 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $9,343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of COP. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 70.1% during the fourth quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 8,233 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $817,000 after purchasing an additional 3,393 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 41.9% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 7,537 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $747,000 after purchasing an additional 2,224 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its position in ConocoPhillips by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 187,349 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $18,631,000 after acquiring an additional 4,066 shares in the last quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in ConocoPhillips by 47.8% in the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 104,166 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $10,330,000 after acquiring an additional 33,667 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter worth $1,017,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $117.00 price objective (up previously from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Bank of America cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $107.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Barclays cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.63.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $93.91 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $92.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $79.88 and a 12-month high of $116.08. The firm has a market cap of $118.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.67.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The energy producer reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $14.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.39 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 15.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.98 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.88%.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In other news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson acquired 5,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $94.24 per share, for a total transaction of $499,472.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president directly owned 14,527 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,024.48. This trade represents a 57.44% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.