Banco Santander S.A. Decreases Stock Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Banco Santander S.A. decreased its position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 87.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,987 shares of the energy producer's stock after selling 90,442 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $1,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Values First Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 69.3% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 254 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth $31,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the second quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 95.6% in the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 313 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COP has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $126.00 price target (down previously from $139.00) on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, October 11th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $140.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $137.63.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP stock traded down $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $111.75. The stock had a trading volume of 7,516,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,905,342. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.61 billion, a PE ratio of 13.29, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's 50 day moving average is $108.91 and its 200 day moving average is $111.40. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $101.29 and a twelve month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The firm had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.97 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. ConocoPhillips's quarterly revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 7.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th will be given a $0.78 dividend. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is 37.10%.

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.