First Trust Advisors LP Increases Holdings in ConocoPhillips $COP

First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 146.6% in Q2, owning 2,315,757 shares worth $207.8 million. Other hedge funds also increased their positions. ConocoPhillips reported Q3 earnings of $1.61 per share, beating estimates, and increased its dividend to $0.84 per share. Analysts have mixed ratings on the stock.

First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 146.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,315,757 shares of the energy producer's stock after acquiring an additional 1,376,509 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.19% of ConocoPhillips worth $207,816,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of COP. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 341.5% in the first quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 222 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 136.8% in the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 315 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 182 shares in the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 249.5% in the 2nd quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 325 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 232 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 418.6% in the 1st quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 363 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE COP opened at $93.18 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.14 billion, a PE ratio of 13.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $89.63 and a 200-day moving average of $91.76. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $79.88 and a 52-week high of $106.20.

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ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The energy producer reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.41 by $0.20. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 14.25%.The business had revenue of $15.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.51 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.78. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.52%.

Insider Activity

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In other ConocoPhillips news, Director William H. Mcraven bought 5,768 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $86.68 per share, with a total value of $499,970.24. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,768 shares in the company, valued at $499,970.24. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on COP shares. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday. Mizuho cut their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Susquehanna lowered their target price on ConocoPhillips to $113.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 20th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $129.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded ConocoPhillips from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.77.

Read Our Latest Stock Report on COP

About ConocoPhillips

(Free Report)

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.

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