Naviter Wealth LLC Increases Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Naviter Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,553 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,190 shares during the period. Naviter Wealth LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,734,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Golden State Equity Partners lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 11.3% during the 3rd quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 5,782 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $693,000 after acquiring an additional 587 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth about $232,000. Bill Few Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at approximately $208,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 20.2% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 22,346 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,677,000 after buying an additional 3,763 shares during the period. Finally, Brookstone Capital Management lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 6.6% during the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 7,509 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $949,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock traded down $0.24 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $130.00. The stock had a trading volume of 1,736,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,304,241. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $95.70 and a 52-week high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $122.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $117.60. The company has a market cap of $152.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 1.24.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 9.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 19th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 dividend yield of 2.40%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 25.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on COP. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Mizuho reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $139.00 target price (up from $132.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, March 22nd. Barclays assumed coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $158.00 price target for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.65.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 22nd. The stock was 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 owns 44,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,444,947.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, VP Christopher P. Delk sold 8,505 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.06, for a total transaction of $953,070.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 44,153 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. 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. 0.34% of the stock is currently 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.