Guinness Asset Management LTD Decreases Stock Position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Guinness Asset Management LTD trimmed its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 13.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 139,674 shares of the energy producer's stock after selling 21,060 shares during the quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $13,783,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 42.7% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 103,553 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $10,902,000 after buying an additional 31,011 shares during the last quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 83.8% during the second quarter. Alpha DNA Investment Management LLC now owns 16,427 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,879,000 after acquiring an additional 7,490 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 8,855 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $878,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc lifted its position in ConocoPhillips by 23.6% in the 3rd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 71,097 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $7,488,000 after acquiring an additional 13,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 2,489,514 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $262,094,000 after purchasing an additional 46,621 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director R A. Walker purchased 10,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,716,400. This trade represents a 37.68 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $95.87 per share, with a total value of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,205. This represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE COP traded up $0.15 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $105.76. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,546,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,479,072. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $94.23 and a one year high of $135.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $103.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.37.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 19.53% and a net margin of 17.29%. The firm had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.97 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.16 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 7.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is currently 37.10%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on COP. Susquehanna raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $120.00 to $123.00 in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $136.00.

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.