Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. Acquires Shares of 43,453 ConocoPhillips $COP

Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 43,453 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $4,517,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 120,251,183 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $11,256,713,000 after acquiring an additional 408,304 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 93,886,457 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $9,760,436,000 after purchasing an additional 2,712,703 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 5.9% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,360,060 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $4,527,230,000 after purchasing an additional 2,714,663 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 41,450,162 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,880,151,000 after purchasing an additional 2,350,645 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,038,675 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,407,770,000 after buying an additional 648,432 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Capital One Financial lowered their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $156.00 to $154.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $150.00 to $146.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $143.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $139.21.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 3.4%

COP stock opened at $135.00 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $114.92 and a 200-day moving average of $117.53. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $85.57 and a fifty-two week high of $135.87. The company has a market capitalization of $162.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.86, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.54.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.34. The business had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.79 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 14.22%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.42 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.44%.

Key ConocoPhillips News

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rising crude prices are supporting ConocoPhillips’ expected cash flow and earnings, providing the clearest near-term catalyst for the stock. ConocoPhillips gains as higher oil prices add to post-earnings momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.24 per share exceeded expectations, while $7.2 billion in operating cash flow, doubled share repurchases and a $0.84 quarterly dividend reinforced the company’s capital-return appeal. Full-year guidance was reaffirmed.
• Positive Sentiment: Argus raised its price target to $153 from $136 and maintained a Buy rating. The broader analyst consensus remains constructive, with a reported median target of $146 and no recent sell ratings. Argus raises ConocoPhillips price target
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors continue to cite ConocoPhillips’ low-cost inventory, LNG-related growth and potential cash-flow catalysts as support for its longer-term outlook. ConocoPhillips has low-cost inventory and a major cash flow catalyst ahead
• Neutral Sentiment: Aker BP’s agreement to acquire Apache and ConocoPhillips stakes offshore Norway could streamline the portfolio, although the immediate financial effect was not specified. Aker BP to buy Apache and ConocoPhillips stakes offshore Norway
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and execution risks are tempering the bullish outlook: the stock trades near its 52-week high, while investors are already paying a premium for earnings momentum and LNG growth. Is ConocoPhillips stock a buy as growth meets a premium valuation?
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders have reported 12 open-market sales and no purchases over the past six months, including substantial sales by senior executives. This may signal caution, although insider transactions can reflect compensation or diversification rather than a fundamental view.

ConocoPhillips Company 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.