North Star Asset Management Inc. Makes New Investment in ConocoPhillips $COP

North Star Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 4,941 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $514,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AXA S.A. grew 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 worth $7,622,000 after acquiring an additional 40,499 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 44,852 shares during the period. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in ConocoPhillips in the second quarter worth approximately $151,000. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 53.5% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,806 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,675 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 0.7%

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $130.46 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $85.57 and a 1-year high of $135.88. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $117.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $118.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $156.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.26, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 0.11.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.34. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 14.22%.The company had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.42 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 10.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 44.44%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,296,493.95. This trade represents a 49.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Capital One Financial lowered their target price on ConocoPhillips from $156.00 to $154.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $130.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday, June 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $140.29.

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.