ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Sold by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc reduced its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 25.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,228,656 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 2,410,751 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned about 0.63% of ConocoPhillips worth $716,866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 37.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 15,570,246 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,544,101,000 after purchasing an additional 4,211,939 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 5.8% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,839,758 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $182,449,000 after acquiring an additional 100,593 shares during the period. Polymer Capital Management US LLC acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $473,000. Wellspring Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 26.4% during the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 337,878 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $33,808,000 after purchasing an additional 70,549 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 9.5 %

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $86.18 on Monday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $98.53 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $108.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.06, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.29. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $81.34 and a 1-year high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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, research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Mizuho raised ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $134.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Truist Financial raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $132.95.

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.