Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC Sells 15,495 Shares of ConocoPhillips $COP

Key Points

• Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC reduced its stake in ConocoPhillips by 79.9%, owning only 3,894 shares after selling 15,495 shares in the first quarter.
• ConocoPhillips has been reviewed by analysts with several target price adjustments, most notably from Barclays, which lowered its target from $135.00 to $120.00.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.3% with a payout ratio of 41.88%.

Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC trimmed its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 79.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,894 shares of the energy producer's stock after selling 15,495 shares during the period. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $409,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. 10Elms LLP purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 341.5% in the 1st 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. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 1st quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In related news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson purchased 5,300 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $94.24 per share, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 57.44% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Wednesday. They issued a "hold" rating and a $117.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $117.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Raymond James Financial increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $109.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $120.95.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 1.9%

ConocoPhillips stock traded up $1.8440 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $96.6240. The stock had a trading volume of 6,338,392 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,789,525. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $120.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.67. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $79.88 and a 12-month high of $116.08. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $93.80 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.28.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The energy producer reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $14.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.39 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 15.26% and a return on equity of 14.60%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.98 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is 41.88%.

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.