Lazari Capital Management Inc. Boosts Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Lazari Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,803 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 262 shares during the period. Lazari Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,464,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 35.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,192,580 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $4,097,473,000 after buying an additional 8,479,963 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 512.8% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 3,737,026 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $433,757,000 after purchasing an additional 3,127,165 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,252,822 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $2,705,059,000 after purchasing an additional 1,856,085 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 46.0% in the 1st quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 3,219,929 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $409,833,000 after buying an additional 1,015,158 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 34.7% during the 1st quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,762,431 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $351,602,000 after buying an additional 712,062 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

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

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 3.9 %

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $109.38 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $101.29 and a 12-month high of $135.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $127.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $108.68 and a 200 day moving average of $116.13.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The energy producer reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $14.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.96 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 12th were issued a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.12%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.27%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on COP shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $145.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $140.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $150.00 to $132.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $132.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $140.82.

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.