Calamos Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Calamos Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 333,246 shares of the energy producer’s stock after selling 2,802 shares during the period. Calamos Advisors LLC’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $38,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 25,399 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,540,000 after acquiring an additional 968 shares in the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 1.9% in the first quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 512,126 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $51,213,000 after buying an additional 9,313 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its position in ConocoPhillips by 59.1% in the first quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,810 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $181,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the period. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 21.3% in the first quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 14,063 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,406,000 after purchasing an additional 2,465 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:COP traded down $0.52 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $127.81. The stock had a trading volume of 3,578,167 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,453,397. The business’s 50 day moving average is $119.92 and its 200 day moving average is $117.01. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $95.70 and a fifty-two week high of $135.18. The stock has a market cap of $150.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The energy producer reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.08 by $0.32. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 22.08% and a net margin of 18.71%. The firm had revenue of $15.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.47 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.71 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 9.35 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 19th were issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 15th. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total transaction of $502,781.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 2,654 shares in the company, valued at $293,399.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other ConocoPhillips news, VP Christopher P. Delk sold 8,505 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.06, for a total transaction of $953,070.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Heather G. Hrap sold 4,548 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.55, for a total value of $502,781.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 2,654 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $293,399.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 700,775 shares of company stock worth $87,615,169 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on COP shares. UBS Group increased their price target on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $173.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $137.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, ConocoPhillips presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $142.00.

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.