Balyasny Asset Management LLC Grows Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Balyasny Asset Management LLC raised its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP – Get Rating) by 250.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 319,792 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 228,430 shares during the quarter. Balyasny Asset Management LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $32,728,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,399 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,540,000 after buying an additional 968 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.9% during the 1st quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 512,126 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $51,213,000 after buying an additional 9,313 shares in the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 59.1% during the 1st quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,810 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $181,000 after acquiring an additional 672 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 21.3% during the 1st quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 14,063 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,406,000 after acquiring an additional 2,465 shares during the period. 81.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In related news, Director R A. Walker bought 4,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 22nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $103.00 per share, with a total value of $494,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,842,800. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 4,860 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.58, for a total value of $547,138.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 661,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $74,431,366.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director R A. Walker purchased 4,800 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 22nd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $103.00 per share, with a total value of $494,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 27,600 shares in the company, valued at $2,842,800. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on COP. Barclays upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $151.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 23rd. Capital One Financial lowered shares of ConocoPhillips from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $102.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $154.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 10th. Finally, Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $150.00 to $135.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $136.86.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock opened at $101.36 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.36 and a current ratio of 1.46. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $78.30 and a 52 week high of $138.49. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $112.62 and its 200 day moving average is $116.11. The firm has a market cap of $123.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.29.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 2nd. The energy producer reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.72 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $19.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.16 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 22.74% and a return on equity of 35.30%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.27 EPS. Research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 29th will be given a dividend of $0.51 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 28th. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.01%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is currently 14.06%.

ConocoPhillips Profile

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ConocoPhillips engages in the exploration, production, transportation and marketing of crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, natural gas liquids, and liquefied natural gas on a worldwide basis. It operates through the following geographical segments: Alaska, Lower 48, Canada, Europe, Middle East and North Africa, Asia Pacific, and Other International.