Rice Partnership LLC Raises Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Rice Partnership LLC increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 69,630 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,023 shares during the quarter. ConocoPhillips comprises approximately 1.3% of Rice Partnership LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Rice Partnership LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $6,905,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cypress Capital Group boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 18,790 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,978,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,342 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $331,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,125 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 3,132 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $332,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ignite Planners LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 10,001 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,053,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on COP. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Susquehanna boosted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $132.00 to $134.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $135.89.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 2.7 %

NYSE COP opened at $98.70 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a market cap of $113.59 billion, a PE ratio of 11.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $101.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $106.59. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $94.23 and a 52 week high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. ConocoPhillips’s revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 7.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Arjun N. Murti bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,205. This trade represents a 13.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,716,400. The trade was a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.