Cullen Investment Group LTD. Buys New Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund bought 3,312 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $384,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. West Branch Capital LLC boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 87.8% during the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 231 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. RVW Wealth LLC bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 63.1% during the 3rd quarter. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group now owns 287 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fairfield Bush & CO. bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total transaction of $502,781.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $293,399.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other ConocoPhillips news, VP Christopher P. Delk sold 8,505 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.06, for a total transaction of $953,070.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total value of $502,781.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 700,775 shares of company stock worth $87,615,169. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $130.25 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $153.23 billion, a PE ratio of 14.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $119.24 and a 200-day simple moving average of $116.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. ConocoPhillips has a 12 month low of $95.70 and a 12 month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.32. The business had revenue of $15.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.47 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.71 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 9.21 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Investors of record on Monday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.61%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on COP. Susquehanna decreased their price target on ConocoPhillips from $152.00 to $133.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $139.00 price objective (up from $132.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Scotiabank raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $139.00 to $133.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $140.59.

ConocoPhillips Company 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.