Portfolio Design Labs LLC Makes New Investment in ConocoPhillips $COP

Portfolio Design Labs LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 13,451 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $1,398,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 120,251,183 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $11,256,713,000 after acquiring an additional 408,304 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.0% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 93,886,457 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $9,760,436,000 after purchasing an additional 2,712,703 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,360,060 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $4,527,230,000 after purchasing an additional 2,714,663 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 41,450,162 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,880,151,000 after purchasing an additional 2,350,645 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,038,675 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,407,770,000 after purchasing an additional 648,432 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rising crude prices are supporting ConocoPhillips’ expected cash flow and earnings, providing the clearest near-term catalyst for the stock. ConocoPhillips gains as higher oil prices add to post-earnings momentum
• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter adjusted earnings of $3.24 per share exceeded expectations, while $7.2 billion in operating cash flow, doubled share repurchases and a $0.84 quarterly dividend reinforced the company’s capital-return appeal. Full-year guidance was reaffirmed.
• Positive Sentiment: Argus raised its price target to $153 from $136 and maintained a Buy rating. The broader analyst consensus remains constructive, with a reported median target of $146 and no recent sell ratings. Argus raises ConocoPhillips price target
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors continue to cite ConocoPhillips’ low-cost inventory, LNG-related growth and potential cash-flow catalysts as support for its longer-term outlook. ConocoPhillips has low-cost inventory and a major cash flow catalyst ahead
• Neutral Sentiment: Aker BP’s agreement to acquire Apache and ConocoPhillips stakes offshore Norway could streamline the portfolio, although the immediate financial effect was not specified. Aker BP to buy Apache and ConocoPhillips stakes offshore Norway
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation and execution risks are tempering the bullish outlook: the stock trades near its 52-week high, while investors are already paying a premium for earnings momentum and LNG growth. Is ConocoPhillips stock a buy as growth meets a premium valuation?
• Negative Sentiment: Insiders have reported 12 open-market sales and no purchases over the past six months, including substantial sales by senior executives. This may signal caution, although insider transactions can reflect compensation or diversification rather than a fundamental view.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on COP shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $160.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Argus boosted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $136.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $139.21.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 3.4%

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $135.00 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $162.18 billion, a PE ratio of 17.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.11. ConocoPhillips has a 12 month low of $85.57 and a 12 month high of $135.87. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $114.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $117.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.34. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 14.22% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The firm had revenue of $19.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 10.06 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th will be given a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 17th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.44%.

ConocoPhillips Company 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.