Accredited Investors Inc. Decreases Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Accredited Investors Inc. decreased its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,032 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 145 shares during the period. Accredited Investors Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $232,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 20.7% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 9,600 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,114,000 after purchasing an additional 1,644 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter worth approximately $74,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter worth approximately $96,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 30,031 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,486,000 after buying an additional 686 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CRA Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. CRA Financial Services LLC now owns 4,841 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $562,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE COP traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $111.17. The company had a trading volume of 139,879 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,667,479. The company has a market capitalization of $129.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.24. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $102.27 and a 1 year high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $111.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $117.04.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The energy producer reported $1.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.02. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. The company had revenue of $14.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.64 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.09%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on COP. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $147.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, June 14th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $133.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Barclays raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $158.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Argus upgraded ConocoPhillips to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 7th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $143.65.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total value of $6,000,105.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,288,321.99. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.