ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Sold by Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lowered its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 97,794 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 1,035 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $9,698,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norden Group LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 35.3% in the 4th quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 22,099 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,192,000 after buying an additional 5,771 shares in the last quarter. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $115,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 28,235 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,741,000 after acquiring an additional 2,284 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,505 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,375 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maia Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 26.2% in the fourth quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 4,828 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $496,000 after purchasing an additional 1,003 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Mizuho raised ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $132.00 to $134.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price target for the company. Raymond James lowered shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $157.00 to $124.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $120.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.47.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $99.12 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $126.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.18. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $105.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $94.23 and a 12-month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. Equities research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director R A. Walker bought 10,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,716,400. This represents a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. 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.