Your Advocates Ltd. LLP Grows Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Key Points

• Your Advocates Ltd. LLP increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 34.8%, purchasing an additional 2,892 shares in the first quarter, bringing their total ownership to 11,201 shares valued at approximately $1,176,000.
• ConocoPhillips reported a quarterly EPS of $2.09, outperforming analyst expectations of $2.05, with revenues reaching $16.18 billion against a forecast of $15.74 billion.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 3.22%, with a payout ratio of 39.64%.

Your Advocates Ltd. LLP raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 34.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,201 shares of the energy producer's stock after acquiring an additional 2,892 shares during the quarter. ConocoPhillips makes up 0.5% of Your Advocates Ltd. LLP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Your Advocates Ltd. LLP's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,176,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in COP. Second Line Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 4,990 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $495,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co now owns 7,091 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $703,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,184 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 3,177 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $334,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the period. Finally, Unison Advisors LLC lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Unison Advisors LLC now owns 17,145 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,700,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson bought 5,300 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 16th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $94.24 per share, for a total transaction of $499,472.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the executive vice president owned 14,527 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,369,024.48. The trade was a 57.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their target price on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $123.00 target price (up from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Susquehanna cut their target price on ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $117.00 target price (up from $113.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $121.33.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 2.3%

Shares of COP stock traded down $2.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $93.19. 3,465,042 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,152,117. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $79.88 and a fifty-two week high of $116.08. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $91.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a market cap of $117.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.61.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 16.02%. The business had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $15.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.05 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.64%.

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.