Element Squared LLC Buys Shares of 25,868 ConocoPhillips $COP

Element Squared LLC bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 25,868 shares of the energy producer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,421,000. ConocoPhillips makes up approximately 1.3% of Element Squared LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Howard Hughes Medical Institute acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp acquired a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 113,221 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.71, for a total value of $15,025,558.91. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 350,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,448,500. This trade represents a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 34,500 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.68, for a total transaction of $4,128,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 17,469 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,090,689.92. This trade represents a 66.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 734,891 shares of company stock worth $93,345,692. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. Scotiabank upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 27th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $102.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, January 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.36.

Trending Headlines about ConocoPhillips

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup raised its price target on COP to $150 and kept a Buy rating, backing a meaningful upside case versus recent levels and providing institutional support. Citigroup Raises Target
• Positive Sentiment: Some brokerages/upgrades (Zacks/others) and a positive forecast note have improved headline analyst sentiment, which can support flows and valuation expectations. Analyst Forecast
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro and sector coverage pieces (e.g., takeaways that oil stocks may be “tapped out”) are driving headlines and trading volatility but do not change COP’s fundamentals immediately. Barron’s Sector Note
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Ryan Lance sold 113,221 shares (~$15M) at ~ $132.71 on Mar 31, a sizable insider sale that can be perceived negatively by investors watching insider signals even if done for personal reasons. CEO Sale
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst rotation toward Diamondback Energy and its recognition on “top oil picks” lists highlights investor preference for shale growth/production discipline, which can divert investor dollars away from larger diversified producers like COP. Diamondback vs COP
• Negative Sentiment: Short‑term oil-market moves (recent unwind of a geopolitical premium) trimmed the sector and pressured oil-weighted names, a macro headwind for COP until crude stabilizes. Market Effects

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $130.37 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $115.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $100.39. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $79.88 and a 1-year high of $135.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The company has a market cap of $158.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.19.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The energy producer reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.23 by ($0.21). ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 11.90%. The business had revenue of $13.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.35 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.98 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 53.00%.

ConocoPhillips Profile

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is a Houston-based international energy company focused on exploration and production of oil and natural gas. Formed in 2002 through the merger of Conoco Inc and Phillips Petroleum Company, the firm operates as an independent upstream company that explores for, develops and produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids across a portfolio of global assets.

The company’s activities span conventional and unconventional resources and include onshore and offshore operations in multiple regions around the world.