R Squared Ltd Invests $552,000 in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

R Squared Ltd bought a new position in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 5,570 shares of the energy producer's stock, valued at approximately $552,000. ConocoPhillips makes up 0.5% of R Squared Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COP. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 310.1% in the 4th quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 365 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares during the last quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 214.5% in the fourth quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 15,149 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,502,000 after purchasing an additional 10,332 shares during the last quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Mayflower Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,914 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 417 shares during the period. Kennedy Investment Group boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 167.0% in the fourth quarter. Kennedy Investment Group now owns 14,964 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $1,484,000 after buying an additional 9,359 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BSW Wealth Partners acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 4th quarter worth approximately $238,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP stock traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $101.41. The stock had a trading volume of 2,494,964 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,673,225. 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 $116.71 billion, a PE ratio of 12.06, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.19. The stock's 50 day moving average is $102.53 and its 200 day moving average is $106.90. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $94.23 and a twelve month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 7.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.10%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COP has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $115.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $148.00 to $157.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $128.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $135.89.

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.