Rafferty Asset Management LLC Boosts Stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC increased its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 11.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 335,255 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 34,833 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $33,247,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Albion Financial Group UT lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 876.9% in the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COP has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $113.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $133.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Raymond James downgraded ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $157.00 to $124.00 in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.74.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

COP opened at $92.86 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $117.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.14. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $93.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.13. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $79.88 and a 1-year high of $122.11.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.74 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 16.23%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.05 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.64%.

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.