New York State Teachers Retirement System Buys 80,199 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 7.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,170,901 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 80,199 shares during the period. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $116,118,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Cypress Capital Group lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 18,790 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,978,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Orrstown Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,342 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $331,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Smithfield Trust Co now owns 3,132 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 37,255 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,695,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 4,202 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $442,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,716,400. This represents a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The shares were bought at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,205. The trade was a 13.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP opened at $96.90 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $105.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.16. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $94.23 and a 1 year high of $135.18. The firm has a market cap of $111.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a PEG ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 16.23%. As a group, analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is presently 40.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COP has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James cut ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and lowered their price target for the company from $157.00 to $124.00 in a report on Monday. TD Cowen initiated coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Susquehanna raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.56.

About ConocoPhillips

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.