Foster & Motley Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Foster & Motley Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 12,925 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 159 shares during the quarter. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,500,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at $27,000. West Branch Capital LLC grew its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 87.8% during the fourth quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 63.1% during the third quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 287 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the period. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter worth approximately $44,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of COP opened at $129.83 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $121.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $117.41. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $95.70 and a twelve month high of $135.18. The firm has a market cap of $152.73 billion, a PE ratio of 14.33, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.43.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $15.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.47 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 9.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.40%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 25.61%.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $853,669.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $853,669.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total transaction of $502,781.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 700,775 shares of company stock valued at $87,615,169. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $141.00 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Raymond James dropped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Finally, Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $139.00 price target (up from $132.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, March 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.24.

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.