Pacer Advisors Inc. Buys 7,310 Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) by 0.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,578,387 shares of the energy producer’s stock after buying an additional 7,310 shares during the period. ConocoPhillips comprises about 1.1% of Pacer Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned 0.21% of ConocoPhillips worth $267,147,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 98,832.5% in the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,584,373 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,012,956,000 after purchasing an additional 8,575,696 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,647,723 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,964,432,000 after buying an additional 3,497,750 shares during the period. Cowa LLC boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 6,475.2% during the 1st quarter. Cowa LLC now owns 2,375,224 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,383,000 after buying an additional 2,339,100 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP boosted its position in ConocoPhillips by 794.6% during the 1st quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,313,596 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $229,532,000 after buying an additional 2,054,974 shares during the period. Finally, Findlay Park Partners LLP purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at $207,728,000. Institutional investors own 80.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 569,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.14, for a total transaction of $69,546,516.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 18,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,221,360.18. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

Shares of COP stock traded down $0.75 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $123.73. The company had a trading volume of 1,291,356 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,812,197. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $116.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.25. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $91.53 and a one year high of $138.49. The firm has a market cap of $148.17 billion, a PE ratio of 11.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 1.28 and a current ratio of 1.41.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 3rd. The energy producer reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $12.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.64 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 27.27% and a net margin of 18.66%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.91 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 16th were given a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 27th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.65%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $130.00 target price on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Monday, August 14th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Wolfe Research raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $120.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, July 7th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 8th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $135.11.

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 and internationally. The company's portfolio includes unconventional plays in North America; conventional assets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia; various LNG developments; oil sands assets in Canada; and an inventory of global exploration prospects.