Patten Group Inc. Sells 2,792 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Patten Group Inc. cut its holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 27.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,428 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 2,792 shares during the period. Patten Group Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $737,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cypress Capital Group raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 0.5% in the third quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 18,790 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,978,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,342 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $331,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.3% in the third quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 3,132 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $332,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 37,255 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,695,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verus Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 2.0% in the third quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,137 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $541,000 after buying an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Monday, December 16th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.47.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director R A. Walker bought 10,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,716,400. The trade was a 37.68 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti bought 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

COP opened at $90.62 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $115.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.63, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.18. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $88.47 and a 1-year high of $135.18. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

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

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 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.