GAMMA Investing LLC Grows Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 38.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,123 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 7,739 shares during the quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,789,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in COP. State Street Corp grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 19.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 66,928,793 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $7,046,263,000 after purchasing an additional 10,663,093 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 20.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,161,897 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,280,725,000 after buying an additional 5,240,016 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 59.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,456,011 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,311,369,000 after acquiring an additional 4,656,040 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 5,422.3% in the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 4,587,729 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $482,996,000 after acquiring an additional 4,504,653 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,557,351 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,469,163,000 after acquiring an additional 1,506,599 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 0.9 %

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $100.08 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $94.23 and a 52 week high of $135.18. The stock has a market cap of $115.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.90, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $104.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $108.20. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.16 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 7.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

Insider Activity

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director R A. Walker purchased 10,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,716,400. This represents a 37.68 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,205. The trade was a 13.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on COP. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, September 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.71.

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.