Deutsche Bank AG Trims Holdings in ConocoPhillips $COP

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank AG cut its ConocoPhillips stake by 30.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 1.49 million shares and leaving it with about 3.37 million shares valued at roughly $315.4 million.
• ConocoPhillips benefited from a more constructive backdrop for energy stocks, with improved crude-oil sentiment and sector strength helping support investor interest despite some mixed institutional positioning.
• The company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.89 per share and continued its dividend, paying $0.84 per share for a 2.8% annualized yield; analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy on average.

Deutsche Bank AG trimmed its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 30.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,369,745 shares of the energy producer's stock after selling 1,487,057 shares during the period. Deutsche Bank AG owned about 0.27% of ConocoPhillips worth $315,442,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 120,251,183 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $11,256,713,000 after acquiring an additional 408,304 shares during the period. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,360,060 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $4,527,230,000 after acquiring an additional 2,714,663 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,038,675 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,407,770,000 after acquiring an additional 648,432 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 14,847,367 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,389,862,000 after acquiring an additional 193,401 shares during the period. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,994,674 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,228,886,000 after acquiring an additional 2,216,010 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting ConocoPhillips

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Crude-oil sentiment improved as Middle East supply disruptions and tight inventory conditions kept a floor under oil prices, benefiting large U.S. exploration and production names like ConocoPhillips. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted ConocoPhillips as an energy name positioned to navigate industry pressures, reinforcing the view that COP is relatively well placed versus peers. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Broader energy-sector strength has helped improve sentiment toward oil stocks, with the sector outperforming the market this year and drawing renewed investor attention to names like COP. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary noted that ConocoPhillips did not fall as much as oil prices during a prior pullback, suggesting the stock may be trading more resiliently than crude itself, but without a major company-specific catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: There was also a backdrop of mixed investor positioning, including significant institutional trimming in recent quarters, which can weigh on sentiment even as near-term oil prices improve. Article Title

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 113,221 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 31st. The shares were 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 2,654 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $119.68, for a total transaction of $317,630.72. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 5,663 shares in the company, valued at approximately $677,747.84. This represents a 31.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 671,869 shares of company stock worth $85,857,406. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 2.6%

Shares of NYSE:COP opened at $119.82 on Thursday. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $85.57 and a 52 week high of $135.87. The company's 50 day moving average is $121.19 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The company has a market cap of $145.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 0.11.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.62 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 10.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Zacks Research downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Roth Mkm downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $112.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Freedom Capital downgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $134.48.

ConocoPhillips 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding COP? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.