ConocoPhillips $COP Shares Purchased by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 6.6% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,967,794 shares of the energy producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 184,630 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in ConocoPhillips were worth $308,532,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 120,251,183 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $11,256,713,000 after purchasing an additional 408,304 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 48,360,060 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $4,527,230,000 after buying an additional 2,714,663 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 41,450,162 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $3,880,151,000 after buying an additional 2,350,645 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,038,675 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,407,770,000 after buying an additional 648,432 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 14,847,367 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,389,862,000 after acquiring an additional 193,401 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of COP stock opened at $129.82 on Wednesday. ConocoPhillips has a 1-year low of $85.57 and a 1-year high of $135.87. The firm has a market cap of $155.96 billion, a PE ratio of 17.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.11. The company has a 50-day moving average of $114.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $117.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.39.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.79 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 14.22%.ConocoPhillips’s revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.42 EPS. On average, analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 10.05 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th will be paid a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on COP shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $183.00 to $189.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Barclays decreased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target 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, Zacks Research lowered shares of ConocoPhillips from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.48.

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.