Merit Financial Group LLC Has $5.55 Million Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips $COP

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 16.4%, owning 61,885 shares worth approximately $5.55 million at the end of the last quarter.
• ConocoPhillips reported $1.42 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and noting a 4.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, with an annualized yield of 3.3% and a payout ratio of approximately 41.88%.

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 16.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,885 shares of the energy producer's stock after purchasing an additional 8,711 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $5,554,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Wedmont Private Capital grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 19,149 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $2,011,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. RDA Financial Network boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 6.3% in the first quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 2,632 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.3% during the first quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 90,833 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $9,539,000 after purchasing an additional 2,894 shares during the last quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 10.9% in the first quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 13,875 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,457,000 after buying an additional 1,361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Range Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.9% in the first quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 3,282 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $345,000 after buying an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE COP opened at $94.86 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $94.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.74. The company has a market capitalization of $118.47 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.62. 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.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $14.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $14.39 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.60% and a net margin of 15.26%.The company's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.98 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on COP. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Susquehanna dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Saturday, September 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $117.32.

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.

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