Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC Trims Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC reduced its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 10.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,916 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 3,678 shares during the quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $3,255,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in COP. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 44.2% during the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 10,042 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,278,000 after acquiring an additional 3,080 shares in the last quarter. Norden Group LLC increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 59.8% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 7,270 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $925,000 after buying an additional 2,720 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 7.2% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 70,612 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $8,988,000 after buying an additional 4,731 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the first quarter worth $385,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 16.0% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 283,871 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $36,131,000 after buying an additional 39,237 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In other news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total transaction of $6,000,105.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,288,321.99. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 1.6 %

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $107.84 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $107.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.02. The company has a market cap of $125.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.02, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $101.29 and a 1 year high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 7.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.86%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays increased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com lowered ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, September 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $145.00 price target on the stock. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.47.

ConocoPhillips 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.