ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Purchased by Meridian Wealth Management LLC

Meridian Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 46.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,317 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,678 shares during the quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $527,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mission Wealth Management LP increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 25.9% in the fourth quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 17,489 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,734,000 after buying an additional 3,599 shares in the last quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Auxano Advisors LLC now owns 3,052 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $303,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Keystone Wealth Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Keystone Wealth Services LLC now owns 54,918 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $5,446,000 after buying an additional 2,362 shares in the last quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Grandfield & Dodd LLC now owns 39,407 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,908,000 after buying an additional 258 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Garrett Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 5,113 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 576 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Raymond James downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and cut their target price for the company from $157.00 to $124.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Evercore ISI reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $133.47.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

NYSE COP opened at $88.98 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $113.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.12. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $86.81 and a 12-month high of $135.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $99.82 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $104.64.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The energy producer reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.78 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. Analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 17th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 40.05%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.