Jupiter Topco LLC Invests $427.95 Million in ConocoPhillips $COP

Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 4,116,578 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $427,954,000. Jupiter Topco LLC owned about 0.34% of ConocoPhillips as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of COP. AXA S.A. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 91.1% in the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 84,937 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $7,622,000 after buying an additional 40,499 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.1% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 784,368 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $70,397,000 after acquiring an additional 44,852 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter worth about $33,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at approximately $151,000. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 53.5% in the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,806 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,675 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on COP shares. UBS Group boosted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $143.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Roth Capital raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $124.00 to $130.00 in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Argus upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $136.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an “underperform” rating and issued a $168.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.29.

ConocoPhillips News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: An executive said additional Arctic drilling activity is “inevitable,” signaling potential long-term growth opportunities for ConocoPhillips as access to the region expands. However, the development is unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. More Arctic activity inevitable says ConocoPhillips
• Positive Sentiment: RBC Capital reaffirmed its Buy rating, supporting the bullish analyst view on COP. The company also benefits from firmer crude prices amid supply concerns, which could improve upstream revenue and cash flow. RBC Capital reaffirms Buy rating
• Neutral Sentiment: With COP shares near a three-month peak, a covered-call strategy offering a 1.75% yield at the $140 September strike may appeal to income-focused shareholders. The strategy also suggests investors see the stock’s upside as potentially limited in the near term. Covered call yields with ConocoPhillips
• Negative Sentiment: Senior Vice President Andrew Lundquist sold 9,487 shares for approximately $1.28 million, reducing his position by nearly 50%. While insider sales can reflect personal financial planning, the sizable transaction may weigh on sentiment, particularly with the stock near recent highs. Andrew Lundquist sells ConocoPhillips shares

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 1.1%

COP opened at $131.84 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $116.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $118.14. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $85.57 and a 1-year high of $135.88. The stock has a market cap of $158.39 billion, a PE ratio of 17.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.79 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 14.22% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.42 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 10.55 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 44.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total value of $1,282,168.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,296,493.95. This represents a 49.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

ConocoPhillips Profile

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is a Houston-based international energy company focused on exploration and production of oil and natural gas. Formed in 2002 through the merger of Conoco Inc and Phillips Petroleum Company, the firm operates as an independent upstream company that explores for, develops and produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids across a portfolio of global assets.

The company’s activities span conventional and unconventional resources and include onshore and offshore operations in multiple regions around the world.