ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Price Target Raised to $153.00

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley raised its price target on ConocoPhillips from $149 to $153 and kept an overweight rating, implying about 24% upside from the prior close.
• The broader analyst view remains constructive: ConocoPhillips has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, with a consensus price target of $133.28 after several other firms recently lifted their targets.
• The company recently posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings, reporting $1.89 EPS versus $1.72 expected, while insiders have been selling shares and institutional ownership remains high at 82.36%.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) had its price objective raised by analysts at Morgan Stanley from $149.00 to $153.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the energy producer's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price would indicate a potential upside of 24.01% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Scotiabank lifted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $100.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Capital One Financial cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $156.00 to $154.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $144.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $133.28.

ConocoPhillips Trading Up 0.8%

COP stock opened at $123.38 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $150.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.94, a PEG ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.14. The business's 50-day moving average is $123.48 and its 200 day moving average is $107.14. ConocoPhillips has a 12-month low of $84.28 and a 12-month high of $135.87. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The energy producer reported $1.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.17. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 12.10% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The business had revenue of $15.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.62 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.09 EPS. The business's revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 9.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at ConocoPhillips

In other news, CEO Ryan Michael Lance sold 506,800 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $127.26, for a total value of $64,495,368.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 6,835 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $869,822.10. This represents a 98.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Kelly Brunetti Rose sold 8,500 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.04, for a total transaction of $1,003,340.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 32,984 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,893,431.36. This represents a 20.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 734,891 shares of company stock worth $93,345,692 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of ConocoPhillips

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Patten Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.5% during the first quarter. Patten Group Inc. now owns 5,447 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $719,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. IFC Advisors LLC raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. IFC Advisors LLC now owns 20,182 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $2,664,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 1,006 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $124,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.4% in the first quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 21,144 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $2,791,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Planning Corp boosted its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 0.6% in the first quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 16,062 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $2,120,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.36% of the company's stock.

About ConocoPhillips

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.

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