HTLF Bank Buys Shares of 8,145 ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

HTLF Bank bought a new stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 8,145 shares of the energy producer's stock, valued at approximately $945,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 98,832.5% in the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,584,373 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,012,956,000 after acquiring an additional 8,575,696 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 26.6% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,647,723 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,964,432,000 after purchasing an additional 3,497,750 shares in the last quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $310,102,000. Cowa LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6,475.2% during the 1st quarter. Cowa LLC now owns 2,375,224 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $2,383,000 after buying an additional 2,339,100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $186,330,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on COP. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $157.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Susquehanna cut their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $152.00 to $133.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $141.00 to $149.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Barclays started coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $158.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $142.00.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:COP traded up $1.58 on Friday, hitting $129.39. The company had a trading volume of 3,984,322 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,434,193. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $152.22 billion, a PE ratio of 14.28, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 1.24. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $95.70 and a 52-week high of $135.18. The business has a 50 day moving average of $120.56 and a 200 day moving average of $117.17.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $15.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.47 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 18.71% and a return on equity of 22.08%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.71 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were paid a $0.78 dividend. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.41%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 15th. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is presently 25.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In related news, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total transaction of $502,781.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $293,399.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other ConocoPhillips news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 607,000 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Monday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.91, for a total value of $76,427,370.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 6,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $853,669.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total value of $502,781.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 700,775 shares of company stock worth $87,615,169. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

ConocoPhillips 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.