B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Increases Stock Position in ConocoPhillips $COP

Key Points

• B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 23.1% during the first quarter, now holding 80,387 shares valued at approximately $8.44 million.
• ConocoPhillips reported $1.42 earnings per share for the latest quarter, surpassing analyst expectations, while revenue grew by 4.3% year over year to reach $14.94 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, providing a yield of 3.2%, with a payout ratio of 41.88%.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 23.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 80,387 shares of the energy producer's stock after buying an additional 15,064 shares during the period. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $8,442,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 10Elms LLP purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the first quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the first quarter worth about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $123.00 target price (up previously from $119.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Sunday, August 10th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.95.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of COP stock traded up $0.61 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $99.06. The stock had a trading volume of 4,594,203 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,886,493. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $94.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $93.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. ConocoPhillips has a 12 month low of $79.88 and a 12 month high of $116.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $123.72 billion, a PE ratio of 13.30, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.69.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The energy producer reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.06. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 15.26% and a return on equity of 14.60%. The company had revenue of $14.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.39 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. ConocoPhillips's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson bought 5,300 shares of the 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 completion of the purchase, the executive vice president directly owned 14,527 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,369,024.48. This trade represents a 57.44% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About ConocoPhillips

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.