Meeder Asset Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in ConocoPhillips $COP

Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 297.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 19,517 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 14,602 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $2,576,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in COP. AXA S.A. grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 91.1% during the second quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 84,937 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $7,622,000 after acquiring an additional 40,499 shares during the period. Sei Investments Co. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.1% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 784,368 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $70,397,000 after purchasing an additional 44,852 shares during the period. BNP Paribas acquired a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 2nd quarter valued at about $151,000. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC grew its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 53.5% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 4,806 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $431,000 after purchasing an additional 1,675 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

ConocoPhillips stock opened at $114.70 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 0.12. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $85.57 and a one year high of $135.87. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $113.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $113.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a current ratio of 1.29.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $15.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.62 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 11.39%. ConocoPhillips’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 9.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is 57.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Capital One Financial dropped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $156.00 to $154.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Truist Financial decreased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $128.00 to $115.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $134.04.

Key ConocoPhillips News

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: ConocoPhillips agreed to acquire a 42% stake in BP’s Iraq venture, increasing its exposure to the Kirkuk oilfields and more than 3 billion barrels of recoverable resources. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s Iraq agreement is part of a broader wave of U.S. corporate commitments to support Iraqi energy development, which may signal additional international growth potential. Financial Post article
• Positive Sentiment: Energy shares were broadly stronger, helping support ConocoPhillips alongside a sector-wide move higher. Yahoo Finance article
• Neutral Sentiment: Several reports noted that COP tends to move with crude oil prices, so commodity trends remain an important near-term driver for the stock. Kalkine Media article

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) is a Houston-based international energy company focused on exploration and production of oil and natural gas. Formed in 2002 through the merger of Conoco Inc and Phillips Petroleum Company, the firm operates as an independent upstream company that explores for, develops and produces crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids across a portfolio of global assets.

The company’s activities span conventional and unconventional resources and include onshore and offshore operations in multiple regions around the world.