ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Stake Trimmed by SCP Investment LP

SCP Investment LP trimmed its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 31.9% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 25,668 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 12,000 shares during the period. ConocoPhillips makes up approximately 2.3% of SCP Investment LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. SCP Investment LP’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,696,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 45,847,572 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $4,546,706,000 after buying an additional 5,549,078 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 37.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,570,246 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,544,101,000 after buying an additional 4,211,939 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,757,835 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,364,364,000 after buying an additional 2,971,661 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 10,440.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,964,189 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $311,299,000 after buying an additional 2,936,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 116.5% during the 4th quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 4,318,179 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $428,234,000 after buying an additional 2,324,080 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $92.75 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $91.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $117.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.67. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $79.88 and a one year high of $116.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.13.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.74 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.02% and a return on equity of 16.54%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.64%.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson bought 5,300 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The shares were bought at an average price of $94.24 per share, with a total value of $499,472.00. Following the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 14,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,369,024.48. This trade represents a 57.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on COP shares. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and set a $117.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $125.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Susquehanna decreased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.33.

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.