Mechanics Bank Trust Department Reduces Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department lowered its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 15,180 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 290 shares during the quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,505,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Diversify Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 23,796 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,425,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 42.9% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,437 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 1,331 shares in the last quarter. Gilman Hill Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $217,000. City Holding Co. grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 26,253 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,603,000 after acquiring an additional 917 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Successful Portfolios LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 32.4% in the fourth quarter. Successful Portfolios LLC now owns 6,171 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $612,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Scotiabank decreased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, TD Cowen initiated coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.00.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 0.1 %

COP opened at $105.76 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.16. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $94.23 and a one year high of $135.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a PEG ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $103.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.43.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.16 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 7.7 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is presently 37.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % 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 R A. Walker purchased 10,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following 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 disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company 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.