Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Has $4.50 Million Stock Position in ConocoPhillips $COP

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. reduced its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 74.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 47,526 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 137,329 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $4,498,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COP. Capital International Investors raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 18.2% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 45,645,397 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $4,318,239,000 after acquiring an additional 7,037,873 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.7% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 40,382,724 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,623,946,000 after acquiring an additional 287,970 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 14,653,966 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,386,119,000 after purchasing an additional 260,091 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,994,674 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,228,886,000 after purchasing an additional 2,216,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Primecap Management Co. CA grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 31.3% in the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 10,351,010 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $979,102,000 after purchasing an additional 2,467,555 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about ConocoPhillips

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target to $128 and maintained an “overweight” rating, giving explicit analyst support and upside to the stock. This upgrade is a near-term bullish catalyst. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler bumped its COP price target to $154 (from $111), a much more aggressive bullish view that can underpin buying interest from institutional investors. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Industry commentary: U.S. oil CEOs (including ConocoPhillips’ peers) warned officials the Iran-related energy crisis could worsen — a development that typically supports higher oil prices and benefits oil producers’ earnings and cash flow. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market chatter flagged executive caution about ongoing volatility in energy markets; this underscores uncertainty (volatility can lift oil-company revenues but also increase stock-price swings). Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales: EVP Nicholas Olds sold 14,522 shares (~53.96% reduction of his holding) at ~$119.36 — a material, disclosed sale that can pressure the stock and prompt investor questions about timing. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Senior VP Andrew Lundquist sold 34,500 shares (a ~66% reduction) at ~$119.68 — another sizable executive sale that likely amplified selling sentiment today. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Senior VP Heather Hrap sold 2,654 shares (~31.9% reduction) at ~$119.68 — adds to the pattern of senior-level profit-taking disclosed this week. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on COP shares. Capital One Financial increased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $122.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $117.00 to $108.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Roth Mkm cut shares of ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $112.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $119.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 2,654 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.68, for a total value of $317,630.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 5,663 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $677,747.84. This trade represents a 31.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.79, for a total transaction of $4,751,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 411,211 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $48,847,754.69. This trade represents a 8.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 600,884 shares of company stock valued at $58,250,367 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $121.37 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $107.06 and its 200 day simple moving average is $97.09. The company has a market cap of $149.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $79.88 and a 12-month high of $122.50.

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

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th were paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 18th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 53.00%.

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.