Natixis Advisors LLC Sells 30,975 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Natixis Advisors LLC lessened its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,736,854 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 30,975 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned about 0.15% of ConocoPhillips worth $182,855,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 35.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,192,580 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $4,097,473,000 after acquiring an additional 8,479,963 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 9.6% during the first quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,252,822 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,705,059,000 after purchasing an additional 1,856,085 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 10,634.2% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,205,666 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $126,933,000 after purchasing an additional 1,194,434 shares in the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 19.3% in the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,811,289 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $717,093,000 after purchasing an additional 1,101,685 shares during the period. Finally, Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 46.0% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,219,929 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $409,833,000 after buying an additional 1,015,158 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $112.32 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $108.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.30. The company has a market capitalization of $129.27 billion, a PE ratio of 13.36, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.21. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $101.29 and a 52 week high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.16 EPS. Analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 37.10%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on COP. Susquehanna upped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, September 13th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Scotiabank cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $137.63.

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.