Boston Partners Acquires 703,580 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Key Points

• Boston Partners increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 12.8%, acquiring an additional 703,580 shares to hold a total of 6,179,422 shares, which represents about 0.8% of their portfolio.
• ConocoPhillips reported earnings of $1.42 per share for the quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenues totaling $14.94 billion, which is a 4.3% increase year-over-year.
• The company's quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share reflects an annualized yield of 3.3%, with a payout ratio of 41.88%, and is scheduled for payment on September 2nd.

Boston Partners increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 12.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,179,422 shares of the energy producer's stock after acquiring an additional 703,580 shares during the quarter. ConocoPhillips comprises about 0.8% of Boston Partners' investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Boston Partners owned approximately 0.49% of ConocoPhillips worth $644,827,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 6.2% in the first quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,331 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $350,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 341.5% during the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the period. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in ConocoPhillips by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 61,434 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $6,452,000 after buying an additional 2,311 shares during the last quarter. National Pension Service raised its position in ConocoPhillips by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,579,023 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $270,849,000 after buying an additional 199,054 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MSH Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in ConocoPhillips by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. MSH Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,446 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $572,000 after buying an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on COP. UBS Group raised their price target on ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $117.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $108.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $120.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson purchased 5,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $94.24 per share, with a total value of $499,472.00. Following the purchase, the executive vice president owned 14,527 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,024.48. This represents a 57.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE COP traded down $0.26 during trading on Friday, reaching $95.39. The company had a trading volume of 6,561,919 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,870,423. The company's fifty day moving average price is $93.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.46. ConocoPhillips has a 12 month low of $79.88 and a 12 month high of $116.08. The stock has a market cap of $119.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.80, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The energy producer reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.06. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 15.26%. The company had revenue of $14.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.98 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio is 41.88%.

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.