ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Sold by Paradigm Financial Partners LLC

Paradigm Financial Partners LLC cut its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 24.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,569 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 830 shares during the quarter. Paradigm Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $298,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,486,871 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,495,927,000 after buying an additional 386,276 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 10.6% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,028,061 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,440,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,152,907 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 8.9% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,063,795 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $968,410,000 after purchasing an additional 659,632 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.1% during the third quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,086,681 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $848,984,000 after purchasing an additional 74,278 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,472,590 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $775,416,000 after buying an additional 33,466 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays initiated coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $158.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Susquehanna increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $133.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Scotiabank upped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $143.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.32, for a total value of $5,574,064.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 44,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,444,947.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other ConocoPhillips news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.32, for a total transaction of $5,574,064.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 44,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 700,775 shares of company stock valued at $87,615,169 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $130.24 on Monday. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $95.70 and a 1 year high of $135.18. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $122.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $117.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.38, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.24.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.32. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 22.08%. The firm had revenue of $15.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.71 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 9.57 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

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

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.