Exeter Financial LLC Purchases 229 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Exeter Financial LLC boosted its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,922 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the quarter. Exeter Financial LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,976,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. PSI Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 23.5% in the 4th quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 2,825 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 538 shares during the last quarter. PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter valued at about $208,000. Signet Financial Management LLC grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 400.5% in the fourth quarter. Signet Financial Management LLC now owns 25,249 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,504,000 after acquiring an additional 20,204 shares during the last quarter. Marion Wealth Management raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Marion Wealth Management now owns 13,565 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,345,000 after acquiring an additional 565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Courier Capital LLC raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Courier Capital LLC now owns 20,481 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,031,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $104.29 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market capitalization of $120.03 billion, a PE ratio of 12.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.19. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $104.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $107.63. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $94.23 and a twelve month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 7.77 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.10%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director R A. Walker bought 10,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,716,400. This represents a 37.68 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 21,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley started coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $128.00 price target for the company. Barclays raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Mizuho raised ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $132.00 to $134.00 in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $136.76.

ConocoPhillips Company 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.