ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Bought by Hills Bank & Trust Co

Hills Bank & Trust Co boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,970 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 409 shares during the quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $523,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 69.3% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 150.0% in the first quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 250 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the second quarter valued at $35,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total transaction of $6,000,105.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,288,321.99. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of COP opened at $107.84 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market cap of $125.23 billion, a PE ratio of 12.02, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $107.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $113.02. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $101.29 and a twelve month high of $135.18.

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

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on COP. Scotiabank decreased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $132.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Six equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.