ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-five ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $115.5417.

Several research firms recently weighed in on COP. Argus raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $111.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Johnson Rice cut shares of ConocoPhillips from an “accumulate” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $108.00 to $105.00 in a research report on Friday, December 5th.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock opened at $111.64 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $99.60 and its 200 day moving average is $94.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $137.96 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.32. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $79.88 and a 1 year high of $113.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 5th. The energy producer reported $1.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.23 by ($0.21). The company had revenue of $13.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.35 billion. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.98% and a return on equity of 11.90%. ConocoPhillips’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.98 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 18th will be issued a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 18th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.00%.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In related news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 500,708 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.50, for a total transaction of $46,315,490.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 325,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $30,152,410. This trade represents a 60.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 18.2% in the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 45,645,397 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $4,318,239,000 after acquiring an additional 7,037,873 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA lifted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 66.0% in the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 7,883,455 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $707,461,000 after purchasing an additional 3,135,315 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 31.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 10,778,664 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $966,267,000 after purchasing an additional 2,575,803 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 229.2% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,595,177 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $336,544,000 after buying an additional 2,503,156 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 6.0% during the fourth 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 period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.