Candriam S.C.A. Cuts Position in ConocoPhillips $COP

Candriam S.C.A. trimmed its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,489 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 7,266 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $7,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 2.0% in the second quarter. Police & Firemen s Retirement System of New Jersey now owns 192,108 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $17,240,000 after purchasing an additional 3,801 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. grew its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 192,766 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $17,299,000 after buying an additional 3,745 shares during the last quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,917,000. M&G PLC lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 14.6% during the second quarter. M&G PLC now owns 39,359 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,542,000 after acquiring an additional 5,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 2.0% during the second quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 288,816 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $25,918,000 after acquiring an additional 5,767 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director William H. Mcraven bought 5,768 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $86.68 per share, with a total value of $499,970.24. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 5,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $499,970.24. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of COP stock opened at $91.44 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $79.88 and a fifty-two week high of $115.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $112.99 billion, a PE ratio of 12.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.27. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $91.93.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The energy producer reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 15.26%.The firm had revenue of $15.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.51 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. ConocoPhillips’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be issued a $0.84 dividend. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 47.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $131.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on ConocoPhillips from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $108.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 17th. Eighteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $115.33.

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.