Conning Inc. Sells 39,369 Shares of ConocoPhillips $COP

Conning Inc. lessened its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 11.2% in the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 313,703 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 39,369 shares during the quarter. ConocoPhillips comprises approximately 1.4% of Conning Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Conning Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $41,409,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AXA S.A. raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 91.1% during the 2nd quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 84,937 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $7,622,000 after purchasing an additional 40,499 shares during the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 784,368 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $70,397,000 after buying an additional 44,852 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $151,000. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 53.5% during the second quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,806 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $431,000 after acquiring an additional 1,675 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $98.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Capital One Financial dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $156.00 to $154.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $136.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.04.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of COP opened at $109.06 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $114.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $112.66. The stock has a market cap of $132.86 billion, a PE ratio of 18.52, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.12. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $85.57 and a 1-year high of $135.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.17. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 11.39% and a net margin of 12.10%.The firm had revenue of $15.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.62 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 EPS. ConocoPhillips’s revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 9.28 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 57.05%.

ConocoPhillips Profile

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.