New York State Common Retirement Fund Decreases Position in ConocoPhillips $COP

New York State Common Retirement Fund lowered its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 8.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,489,351 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 136,240 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $140,878,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Navalign LLC lifted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.1% during the second quarter. Navalign LLC now owns 9,918 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $890,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 9,018 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $853,000 after buying an additional 108 shares during the period. Iowa State Bank lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 22,193 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,992,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,097 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $368,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FAS Wealth Partners Inc. boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. FAS Wealth Partners Inc. now owns 12,154 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,091,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $101.47 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $94.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.11. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $79.88 and a 52-week high of $106.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $125.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.35, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.32.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The energy producer reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.20. The company had revenue of $15.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.51 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 14.25%.The business’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 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 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is presently 47.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on COP. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $98.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director William H. Mcraven acquired 5,768 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $86.68 per share, with a total value of $499,970.24. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 5,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,970.24. This represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 500,708 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.50, for a total transaction of $46,315,490.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 325,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,152,410. This trade represents a 60.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.24% 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.