ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Stock Holdings Lifted by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,358 shares of the energy producer's stock after purchasing an additional 3,232 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,911,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 19.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 66,928,793 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $7,046,263,000 after purchasing an additional 10,663,093 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 20.2% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 31,161,897 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $3,280,725,000 after acquiring an additional 5,240,016 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 24,733,928 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $2,601,639,000 after acquiring an additional 924,289 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,557,351 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,469,163,000 after acquiring an additional 1,506,599 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 59.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 12,456,011 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,311,369,000 after acquiring an additional 4,656,040 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on COP shares. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday, December 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $128.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $134.00 to $132.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $136.00.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

NYSE:COP traded up $0.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $105.76. The stock had a trading volume of 8,546,391 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,479,072. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $94.23 and a 52 week high of $135.18. The stock 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 50 day simple moving average of $103.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $107.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last released 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 net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. ConocoPhillips's revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 7.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is 37.10%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the purchase, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,061,205. The trade was a 13.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About ConocoPhillips

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.