HM Payson & Co. Lowers Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

HM Payson & Co. cut its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 6.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,712 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 1,916 shares during the quarter. HM Payson & Co.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,805,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COP. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 121,826,062 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $12,081,491,000 after acquiring an additional 12,751,120 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 13.8% during the fourth 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 acquiring an additional 5,549,078 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,570,246 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,544,101,000 after acquiring an additional 4,211,939 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 13.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,131,288 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,792,521,000 after acquiring an additional 3,397,360 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 27.6% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 13,757,835 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,364,364,000 after acquiring an additional 2,971,661 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.2%

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $94.28 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.81. The company has a market cap of $119.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.61. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $79.88 and a 52-week high of $118.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.04. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 16.02%. The firm had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.05 EPS. Analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.31%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 39.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ConocoPhillips news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson purchased 5,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 30th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $115.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 11th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $95.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $107.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $117.00 target price (up previously from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.80.

About ConocoPhillips

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.