Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc Takes Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 2,952 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $293,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 19.0% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 66,928,793 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $7,046,263,000 after buying an additional 10,663,093 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 20.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,161,897 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,280,725,000 after acquiring an additional 5,240,016 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,733,928 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,601,639,000 after acquiring an additional 924,289 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,557,351 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,469,163,000 after purchasing an additional 1,506,599 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 59.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,456,011 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,311,369,000 after purchasing an additional 4,656,040 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock opened at $104.29 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $104.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.63. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $94.23 and a 52-week high of $135.18. The company has a market capitalization of $120.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. Analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 7.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.99%. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 37.10%.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on COP shares. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $136.76.

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.