Allstate Corp Buys 48,774 Shares of ConocoPhillips $COP

Key Points

• Allstate Corp more than doubled its stake in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter, buying 48,774 additional shares to bring its total to 95,369 shares worth about $8.9 million.
• ConocoPhillips reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.89 per share versus estimates of $1.72, though revenue still fell 6.1% year over year to $15.76 billion.
• Analyst sentiment remains constructive, with ConocoPhillips carrying a Moderate Buy consensus rating and an average price target of $133.28; the company also announced a $0.84 quarterly dividend yielding 2.8% annualized.

Allstate Corp raised its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 104.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 95,369 shares of the energy producer's stock after purchasing an additional 48,774 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $8,927,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Duncan Williams Asset Management LLC now owns 2,370 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $222,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 2,570 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $241,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 8,018 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $751,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Chesapeake Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Chesapeake Wealth Management now owns 7,160 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $670,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,414 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $226,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $121.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 17th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $160.00 to $161.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on ConocoPhillips from $149.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $133.28.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $120.48 on Tuesday. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $84.28 and a 1 year high of $135.87. The stock has a market cap of $146.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.14. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $123.68 and a 200 day moving average of $107.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.17. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The company had revenue of $15.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. ConocoPhillips's revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 9.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be paid a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio is currently 57.05%.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In other news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 113,221 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.71, for a total value of $15,025,558.91. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 350,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,448,500. This represents a 24.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Andrew D. Lundquist sold 34,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.68, for a total value of $4,128,960.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 17,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,090,689.92. This represents a 66.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 734,891 shares of company stock valued at $93,345,692. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.

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