ConocoPhillips $COP Position Reduced by B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG

Key Points

• B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its ConocoPhillips stake by 36.2% in the second quarter, selling 37,584 shares and retaining 66,330 shares valued at approximately $6.9 million. Institutional investors collectively own 82.36% of COP.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with ConocoPhillips carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $140.29; several firms recently raised their targets to between $153 and $189.
• ConocoPhillips reported quarterly EPS of $3.24, exceeding estimates, while revenue rose 32.4% year over year to $19.52 billion. The company also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.84 per share, equivalent to a 2.5% annual yield.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lowered its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 36.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 66,330 shares of the energy producer's stock after selling 37,584 shares during the quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $6,896,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Patten Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.5% during the first quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 5,447 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $719,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. IFC Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 20,182 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $2,664,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.6% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 1,006 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $124,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.4% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 21,144 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $2,791,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.6% during the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 16,062 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $2,120,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on COP shares. Argus lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $136.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $143.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded ConocoPhillips from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $140.29.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 1.3%

COP opened at $135.48 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $162.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.92, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.39. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $119.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $119.33. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $85.57 and a fifty-two week high of $137.42.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.34. The company had revenue of $19.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.79 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 14.22% and a return on equity of 14.72%. The business's revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.42 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 10.55 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is presently 44.44%.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, SVP Andrew Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total transaction of $1,282,168.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,296,493.95. This trade represents a 49.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.09% of the stock is 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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