West Tower Group LLC Acquires 1,600 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

West Tower Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 61.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,200 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,600 shares during the quarter. West Tower Group LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $417,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in COP. Claro Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 23.5% during the 3rd quarter. Claro Advisors LLC now owns 4,215 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 803 shares in the last quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,328 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $456,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares in the last quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,694 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $389,000 after acquiring an additional 683 shares in the last quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC now owns 22,734 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,393,000 after acquiring an additional 1,644 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smead Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,196,884 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $231,288,000 after acquiring an additional 74,045 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $100.51 on Wednesday. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $86.81 and a twelve month high of $135.18. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $99.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $103.56. The company has a market capitalization of $127.88 billion, a PE ratio of 12.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its earnings results 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 net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, January 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $132.00 to $134.00 in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Arjun N. Murti purchased 2,500 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,205. This trade represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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.