ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Receives Consensus Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) has been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $121.70.

Several equities research analysts recently commented on COP shares. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $120.00 to $114.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $111.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $113.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday. Barclays reduced their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In related news, EVP Kirk L. Johnson acquired 5,300 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $94.24 per share, with a total value of $499,472.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 14,527 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,369,024.48. This represents a 57.44% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Gray Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Gray Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,171 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $215,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Plancorp LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 4,018 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $399,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 2,912 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Councilmark Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Councilmark Asset Management LLC now owns 19,639 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,948,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Second Line Capital LLC lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Second Line Capital LLC now owns 4,990 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:COP traded up $0.37 on Thursday, hitting $95.74. 1,698,677 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,629,788. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $79.88 and a 52 week high of $118.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.78. The company has a market cap of $121.04 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.61.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 16.54% and a net margin of 16.02%. The firm had revenue of $16.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.74 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.05 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.26%. ConocoPhillips's payout ratio is currently 39.64%.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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.