National Bank of Canada FI Buys 900,784 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 139.9%, purchasing an additional 900,784 shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately $162.2 million.
• ConocoPhillips recently reported quarterly earnings of $1.42 EPS, exceeding analyst expectations, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, equating to a 3.4% yield.
• Several institutional investors have also significantly increased their stakes in ConocoPhillips, with large increases reported by firms such as Price T Rowe Associates and Schwartz Investment Counsel.

National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 139.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,544,725 shares of the energy producer's stock after buying an additional 900,784 shares during the quarter. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.12% of ConocoPhillips worth $162,225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 45,847,572 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $4,546,706,000 after purchasing an additional 5,549,078 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 83.0% during the first quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC now owns 18,060 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,897,000 after purchasing an additional 8,189 shares in the last quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 159.6% during the first quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 48,800 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $5,125,000 after buying an additional 30,000 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 853.3% in the first quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 6,616 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 5,922 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 151.1% during the first quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 91,224 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $9,580,000 after buying an additional 54,900 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson purchased 5,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $94.24 per share, with a total value of $499,472.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 14,527 shares in the company, valued at $1,369,024.48. This trade represents a 57.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.6%

COP stock opened at $92.56 on Friday. The business's 50-day moving average is $92.59 and its 200 day moving average is $93.80. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $79.88 and a 12-month high of $116.08. The stock has a market cap of $117.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.76, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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 analyst estimates of $14.39 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 16.02%. The business's revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.98 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders 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 3.4%. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 39.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on COP. Bank of America dropped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $107.00 to $106.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 23rd. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $123.00 price target (up previously from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. 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 report on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $117.00 target price (up previously from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $120.63.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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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