First Financial Bank Trust Division Lowers Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

First Financial Bank Trust Division decreased its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 6.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,005 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 510 shares during the period. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $892,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,672,104 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,211,901,000 after acquiring an additional 108,956 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 23,712,617 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,752,325,000 after purchasing an additional 4,726,952 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.2% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 12,486,871 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,495,927,000 after purchasing an additional 386,276 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,011,035 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,394,162,000 after purchasing an additional 270,859 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 8.9% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 8,063,795 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $968,410,000 after purchasing an additional 659,632 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:COP traded down $0.10 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $109.44. The stock had a trading volume of 2,028,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,473,869. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $121.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $117.60. The company has a quick ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market cap of $127.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 1.23. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $99.35 and a fifty-two week high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The energy producer reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.04. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 18.40% and a return on equity of 20.85%. The firm had revenue of $14.48 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.72 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 13th were issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 10th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 26.27%.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at $853,669.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at $853,669.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicholas G. Olds sold 12,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.44, for a total transaction of $1,536,246.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,522 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,836,161.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 664,350 shares of company stock worth $83,537,680. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on COP. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $159.00 price objective (up previously from $155.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $149.00 to $151.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Susquehanna lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $133.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $144.18.

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.