Gabelli Funds LLC Decreases Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Gabelli Funds LLC cut its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.4% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 517,100 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 7,500 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $59,146,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 96.0% during the fourth quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 247 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 69.3% during the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Northwest Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total transaction of $6,000,105.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,288,321.99. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Raymond James reiterated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $159.00 price target (up previously from $155.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $151.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $132.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $142.29.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP stock opened at $109.87 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $127.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.44, a PEG ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $109.76 and a 200-day moving average of $116.57. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $101.29 and a 12-month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $14.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.96 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. ConocoPhillips’s revenue was up 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.27%.

ConocoPhillips 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.