Smead Capital Management Inc. Lowers Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Smead Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 17.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,929,476 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 402,749 shares during the period. ConocoPhillips comprises approximately 4.0% of Smead Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Smead Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $223,954,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norris Perne & French LLP MI raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Norris Perne & French LLP MI now owns 4,364 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $523,000 after buying an additional 80 shares during the period. Sloy Dahl & Holst LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sloy Dahl & Holst LLC now owns 2,629 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 35.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC now owns 333 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. CRA Financial Services LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 4,702 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Finally, KLCM Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. now owns 3,305 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $396,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE COP traded down $0.61 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $127.72. 1,830,512 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,428,852. The firm has a market capitalization of $150.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.14, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.43. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $95.70 and a 52-week high of $135.18. The company’s 50-day moving average is $119.92 and its 200-day moving average is $117.01.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.32. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. The company had revenue of $15.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.47 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.71 EPS. Analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 9.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.44%. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 25.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.32, for a total value of $5,574,064.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 44,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other ConocoPhillips news, CFO William L. Jr. Bullock sold 45,200 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.32, for a total value of $5,574,064.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 44,153 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,444,947.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Nicholas G. Olds sold 12,150 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $126.44, for a total value of $1,536,246.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 14,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,836,161.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 700,775 shares of company stock valued at $87,615,169 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $152.00 to $133.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 26th. UBS Group increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $139.00 price objective (up from $132.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.00.

ConocoPhillips 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.