ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Director Timothy Leach Sells 40,000 Shares of Stock

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Director Timothy Leach sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.79, for a total value of $4,751,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 411,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,847,754.69. The trade was a 8.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $117.09 on Tuesday. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $79.88 and a 1-year high of $122.50. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $104.71 and a 200 day moving average price of $96.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $144.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

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

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th were given a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is presently 53.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on COP shares. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $102.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Mizuho increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 12th. Raymond James Financial raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $113.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Susquehanna upped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.54.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 10,352 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $989,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC now owns 2,370 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 2,570 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $241,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Strategic Blueprint LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 8,018 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $751,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the period. Finally, Chesapeake Wealth Management boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 7,160 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $670,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Company 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.