ConocoPhillips $COP Shares Acquired by Howard Capital Management LLC

Howard Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 338.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,059 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 81,882 shares during the quarter. Howard Capital Management LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $13,273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of COP. Patten Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.5% during the first quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 5,447 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $719,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. IFC Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 20,182 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,664,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 1,006 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 21,144 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,791,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 16,062 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,120,000 after buying an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Andrew Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total transaction of $1,282,168.05. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares in the company, 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 this link. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 3.3%

NYSE COP traded up $4.70 on Friday, reaching $146.43. The company had a trading volume of 7,765,878 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,598,777. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company’s fifty day moving average is $132.11 and its 200 day moving average is $122.44. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $85.57 and a 52-week high of $146.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $175.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 0.24.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.79 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 11.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on COP shares. Barclays dropped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Roth Capital upgraded ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $124.00 to $130.00 in a report on Monday, June 22nd. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $168.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $155.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.62.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in finding, developing and producing crude oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids and liquefied natural gas. Unlike integrated energy companies, ConocoPhillips focuses primarily on upstream activities rather than refining and retail fuel operations.

The company has a diversified portfolio of assets in major producing regions, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Norway and Qatar. Its U.S. operations include oil and gas developments in Alaska and the Lower 48 states, while its international portfolio includes conventional and offshore projects.