ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Shares Sold by Janus Henderson Group PLC

Janus Henderson Group PLC cut its holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 13.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,537,432 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 533,030 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned approximately 0.31% of ConocoPhillips worth $372,420,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 59.7% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,456,011 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,311,369,000 after buying an additional 4,656,040 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.6% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 9,900,596 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,132,430,000 after buying an additional 438,241 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.2% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,096,450 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $747,114,000 after buying an additional 153,944 shares during the period. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 19.3% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 6,811,289 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $717,093,000 after buying an additional 1,101,685 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 17.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,013,513 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $633,103,000 after buying an additional 896,651 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.63.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

COP opened at $106.05 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $108.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $110.52. The firm has a market cap of $122.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.18. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $101.29 and a twelve month high of $135.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The business’s revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 7.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. This is a positive change from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.10%.

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.