Romano Brothers AND Company Reduces Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Romano Brothers AND Company lessened its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,047 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 105 shares during the period. Romano Brothers AND Company’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $897,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 80.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 343 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COP has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $134.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $136.00.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $105.76 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $121.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.19. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $94.23 and a 52 week high of $135.18. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $103.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $107.47. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.95%. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 37.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

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