Investment Management Corp of Ontario Increases Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Investment Management Corp of Ontario boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 47.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 38,710 shares of the energy producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,500 shares during the period. Investment Management Corp of Ontario’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $4,075,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vicus Capital grew its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 3.7% during the 2nd quarter. Vicus Capital now owns 2,637 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $302,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 2.5% during the second quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 3,900 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $446,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Excalibur Management Corp increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Excalibur Management Corp now owns 4,037 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $462,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Cypress Capital Group raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 18,790 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,978,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank OZK raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bank OZK now owns 6,251 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $715,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP stock opened at $106.05 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $122.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.61, a PEG ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.18. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $101.29 and a fifty-two week high of $135.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.30. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $108.64 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.52.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. The company 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 firm’s revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. Analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 7.76 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on COP. Wells Fargo & Company reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, October 18th. 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 report on Friday, October 4th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price target on ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have 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 a consensus target price of $137.63.

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.