ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Receives $143.24 Average Price Target from Analysts

Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) have been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $142.29.

COP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $147.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Friday, June 14th. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $154.00 to $147.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $145.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $120.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, StockNews.com cut ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total value of $6,000,105.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,288,321.99. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of ConocoPhillips

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 35.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,192,580 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $4,097,473,000 after buying an additional 8,479,963 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,252,822 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,705,059,000 after acquiring an additional 1,856,085 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 5.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,986,970 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,907,542,000 after acquiring an additional 826,529 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 9,900,596 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,132,430,000 after acquiring an additional 438,241 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 7,412,753 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $860,398,000 after purchasing an additional 191,519 shares during the period. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 1.7 %

COP opened at $110.51 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $129.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.33. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $109.82 and its 200 day moving average is $116.55. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $101.29 and a fifty-two week high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The energy producer reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.02. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. The business had revenue of $14.14 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.84 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 8.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a $0.58 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 12th. This represents a $2.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.10%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.27%.

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