Howard Financial Services LTD. Trims Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Howard Financial Services LTD. cut its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 8.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,795 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 368 shares during the period. Howard Financial Services LTD.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $399,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. 10Elms LLP purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $133.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $111.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $107.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.89.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of COP opened at $85.53 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $79.88 and a fifty-two week high of $118.40. The company has a market cap of $108.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.98, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.64. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $90.80 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.62.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.74 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.05 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.64%.

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.