Brokerages Set ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) PT at $133.04

Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-eight brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have issued a hold recommendation, sixteen have issued a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $133.04.

Several analysts have weighed in on COP shares. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $98.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Bank of America reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $102.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th.

Key ConocoPhillips News

Here are the key news stories impacting ConocoPhillips this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Norway approved ConocoPhillips’ plan to restart and redevelop long-idle oil and gas fields in the Greater Ekofisk area, a project expected to increase gas deliveries to Europe and benefit from stronger European energy security demand. Article: ConocoPhillips gets Norway’s nod to restart fields, boost Europe gas supply
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s North Sea revival plan could unlock new gas volumes for Germany, the UK, and other European markets, reinforcing COP’s exposure to a potentially stronger gas pricing backdrop. Article: ConocoPhillips North Sea Revival Ties Undervalued Stock To European Gas Demand
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are also parsing analyst questions from COP’s recent Q1 earnings call, suggesting the market is still focused on management’s guidance, capital plans, and the durability of the company’s earnings outlook. Article: The 5 most interesting analyst questions from ConocoPhillips’s Q1 earnings call
• Negative Sentiment: Freedom Capital downgraded ConocoPhillips from strong-buy to hold, which can weigh on sentiment and offset some of the optimism from the Norway project. Article: ConocoPhillips was downgraded by Freedom Capital from strong-buy to hold

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

NYSE:COP opened at $113.76 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $122.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.12. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $84.28 and a 12-month high of $135.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $138.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.60 and a beta of 0.14.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $15.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.62 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 11.39%. ConocoPhillips’s quarterly revenue was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 9.5 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th will be given a dividend of $0.84 per share. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 11th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 506,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $127.26, for a total transaction of $64,495,368.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 6,835 shares in the company, valued at $869,822.10. The trade was a 98.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Kelly Brunetti Rose sold 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $1,003,340.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 32,984 shares in the company, valued at $3,893,431.36. This trade represents a 20.49% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 734,891 shares of company stock valued at $93,345,692 over the last three months. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of ConocoPhillips

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 151.0% during the 1st quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 241 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Evergreen Advisors LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, Strive Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company’s stock.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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.