Nuveen LLC Lowers Stake in ConocoPhillips $COP

Nuveen LLC reduced its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,137,843 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 194,999 shares during the quarter. Nuveen LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $761,783,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter valued at $28,000. BNP Paribas purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Optima Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $160.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Argus upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $128.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $149.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm lowered shares of ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $112.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $134.48.

Key Headlines Impacting ConocoPhillips

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: ConocoPhillips joined TotalEnergies and QatarEnergy in an MoU with the Syrian Petroleum Company to explore offshore Block 3 in the Mediterranean, which could create a new long-term exploration opportunity if the project advances. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary on COP remains constructive overall, with some analysts highlighting the company’s resilience and others maintaining upbeat price targets, suggesting Wall Street still sees upside potential over time. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Energy stocks broadly have been stronger this year, and the sector ETF’s gains show investors are still favoring oil and gas names despite recent pullbacks. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: ConocoPhillips reported solid last quarter results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, which continues to support the investment case even though year-over-year revenue declined.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider activity has been negative, with a recent director stock sale adding to a pattern of insider selling that can weigh on sentiment. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: One recent article framed COP as vulnerable to additional market weakness, reinforcing concerns that the stock could stay tied to crude-price moves if oil sentiment softens further. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 113,221 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.71, for a total transaction of $15,025,558.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 350,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,448,500. This represents a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nicholas G. Olds sold 6,994 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.06, for a total transaction of $888,657.64. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 5,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,488.70. The trade was a 56.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 634,715 shares of company stock valued at $81,410,816. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 3.8%

NYSE:COP opened at $115.41 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $85.57 and a 1-year high of $135.87. The company has a 50-day moving average of $120.86 and a 200 day moving average of $110.41. The firm has a market cap of $140.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $15.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.62 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 10.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.05%.

About ConocoPhillips

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.