Boston Partners Raises Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Boston Partners increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 24.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,475,842 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,078,063 shares during the period. Boston Partners owned approximately 0.48% of ConocoPhillips worth $543,976,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of COP. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 876.9% in the fourth quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 80.5% during the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 343 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Arjun N. Murti purchased 2,500 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on COP shares. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Two investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.05.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP stock opened at $99.42 on Tuesday. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $86.81 and a 1-year high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $126.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $99.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.65.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 16.23%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 40.05%.

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.