ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Purchased by Athena Investment Management

Athena Investment Management increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 7.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,944 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. Athena Investment Management’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $490,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COP. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.7% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 1,163,724 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $122,628,000 after purchasing an additional 52,334 shares in the last quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 3.0% in the third quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 13,739 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,434,000 after acquiring an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 7.3% in the third quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,106 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $325,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 1.3% in the third quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 246,504 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $25,952,000 after acquiring an additional 3,202 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director R A. Walker bought 10,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at $3,716,400. The trade was a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti bought 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the transaction, the director now 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. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on COP. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Raymond James downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $157.00 to $124.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.47.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $99.12 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $100.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $105.08. The stock has a market cap of $126.12 billion, a PE ratio of 12.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.18. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $94.23 and a 12-month high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. On average, research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 17th will be given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.05%.

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.