Cullen Capital Management LLC Makes New $181.79 Million Investment in ConocoPhillips $COP

Cullen Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 1,748,628 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $181,787,000. ConocoPhillips accounts for 1.8% of Cullen Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Cullen Capital Management LLC owned about 0.15% of ConocoPhillips at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COP. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 151.0% during the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 241 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Ballast Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP opened at $133.37 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $115.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $117.97. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $85.57 and a 1 year high of $135.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.22 billion, a PE ratio of 17.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 0.11.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 EPS 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 business had revenue of $19.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.79 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 10.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.84 dividend. 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 44.44%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on COP shares. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Argus boosted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $136.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $140.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total value of $1,282,168.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,296,493.95. The trade was a 49.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.