First Merchants Corp Decreases Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

First Merchants Corp lessened its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 4.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 50,721 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 2,261 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $5,030,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Albion Financial Group UT grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 876.9% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the period. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 80.5% in the fourth quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 343 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $128.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Barclays decreased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $120.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI restated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, December 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $133.56.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock opened at $96.90 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $111.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $94.23 and a 52-week high of $135.18. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $100.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $105.91.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 16.23%. Equities research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In other news, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,716,400. This trade represents a 37.68 % increase in their position. The acquisition 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 dated Friday, December 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,205. This trade represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.