HTLF Bank Invests $945,000 in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

HTLF Bank purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 8,145 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $945,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of COP. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,399 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,540,000 after purchasing an additional 968 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 512,126 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $51,213,000 after acquiring an additional 9,313 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 59.1% in the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,810 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $181,000 after acquiring an additional 672 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 21.3% in the 1st quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 14,063 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,406,000 after acquiring an additional 2,465 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at $853,669.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at $853,669.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total value of $502,781.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 2,654 shares in the company, valued at approximately $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 700,775 shares of company stock worth $87,615,169. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock traded up $1.43 on Friday, hitting $129.24. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,297,718 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,396,798. 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 1 year low of $95.70 and a 1 year high of $135.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $120.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $117.09. The company has a market capitalization of $152.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.24.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.08 by $0.32. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. The firm had revenue of $15.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.47 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.71 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 25.61%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays initiated coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $158.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $152.00 to $133.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. UBS Group raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $173.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.00.

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.