First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA Purchases 439 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA grew its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 18.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,841 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the 1st quarter valued at $222,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the first quarter valued at about $58,000. Swedbank AB bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the first quarter worth about $66,495,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 318.1% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 287,127 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $36,546,000 after purchasing an additional 218,453 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Advisors LLC boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 50.5% during the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 68,844 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $8,763,000 after purchasing an additional 23,115 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Scotiabank lowered their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.63.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

NYSE:COP opened at $107.42 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $108.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.98. The stock has a market cap of $123.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.77, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.21. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $101.29 and a 1-year high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 7.76 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

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.