National Pension Service Has $306.20 Million Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips $COP

National Pension Service raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 2.2% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,237,086 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 68,227 shares during the period. National Pension Service’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $306,196,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Howard Hughes Medical Institute purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 136.8% in the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 315 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 58.0% in the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 316 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 249.5% during the 2nd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 325 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on COP. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Susquehanna raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday. Johnson Rice downgraded ConocoPhillips from an “accumulate” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $108.00 to $105.00 in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Capital One Financial raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research upped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $122.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.96.

Key ConocoPhillips News

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Federal judge cleared ConocoPhillips to proceed with its winter drilling program in Alaska, reducing near-term legal uncertainty that could have delayed production and spending. Federal judge rules that ConocoPhillips can proceed with winter drilling program
• Positive Sentiment: Regulatory clearance was echoed in coverage that a judge “green-lit” COP’s Alaska drilling program, further lowering execution risk for Arctic activity. Judge green-lights ConocoPhillips Alaska oil drilling program
• Positive Sentiment: Geopolitical risk has pushed oil prices higher (Iran/strait-of-Hormuz concerns), which benefits integrated E&P names like ConocoPhillips through stronger commodity realizations and cash flow. Oil Rallies On Iran War Fears – 5 Integrated Energy Giants With Big Dividends
• Neutral Sentiment: ConocoPhillips says its plans for four new Arctic wells are unaffected by the toppled rig, which suggests management expects limited near-term disruption to the development schedule. ConocoPhillips’ plans for 4 new Arctic wells unaffected by toppled rig, company says
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes the company called the Doyon rig destruction “a sad day” but downplayed major impacts; investors should watch for official damage/insurance updates. ConocoPhillips execs call Doyon oil rig destruction a ‘sad day,’ but no major impacts expected
• Negative Sentiment: An Arctic rig toppled and ignited a fire — an operational and reputational risk that could lead to added costs, regulatory scrutiny or delays if follow-up inspections or litigation arise. Monitor incident reports and any updates from regulators. As an Oil Rig Topples in the Alaskan Arctic and Ignites a Fire, Exploration There Continues
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts expect a year-over-year earnings decline for the upcoming quarter, which could cap near-term upside if results miss expectations or guidance is cautious. Analysts Estimate ConocoPhillips (COP) to Report a Decline in Earnings: What to Look Out for

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 500,708 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.50, for a total value of $46,315,490.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 325,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,152,410. This represents a 60.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director William H. Mcraven purchased 5,768 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 10th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $86.68 per share, for a total transaction of $499,970.24. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 5,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $499,970.24. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $104.25 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $79.88 and a 1 year high of $106.20. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.25. The company has a market cap of $128.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.74, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The energy producer reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $15.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.51 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 14.25% and a return on equity of 13.64%. The business’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th were paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 47.52%.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is a Houston-based international energy company focused on exploration and production of oil and natural gas. Formed in 2002 through the merger of Conoco Inc and Phillips Petroleum Company, the firm operates as an independent upstream company that explores for, develops and produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids across a portfolio of global assets.

The company’s activities span conventional and unconventional resources and include onshore and offshore operations in multiple regions around the world.