Strs Ohio Invests $63.99 Million in ConocoPhillips $COP

Key Points

• Strs Ohio has invested approximately $63.99 million in ConocoPhillips by purchasing 609,302 shares during the first quarter.
• ConocoPhillips reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.42, exceeding analyst expectations and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 4.3%.
• Research analysts have given ConocoPhillips an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $120.86.

Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 609,302 shares of the energy producer's stock, valued at approximately $63,989,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 379.7% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 40,094,754 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $4,210,751,000 after purchasing an additional 31,736,423 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter valued at about $658,981,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 190.5% in the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 4,664,408 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $484,539,000 after purchasing an additional 3,058,505 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 10,440.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,964,189 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $311,299,000 after acquiring an additional 2,936,066 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 30.2% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 8,972,545 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $942,297,000 after buying an additional 2,080,625 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on COP shares. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Melius assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "hold" rating and a $117.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $115.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Sixteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $120.86.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $94.20 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $93.04. ConocoPhillips has a 12 month low of $79.88 and a 12 month high of $116.08. The stock has a market capitalization of $117.65 billion, a PE ratio of 12.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The energy producer reported $1.42 earnings per share 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 14.60% and a net margin of 15.26%.ConocoPhillips's quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.98 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th were given a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is 41.88%.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

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

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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