ConocoPhillips Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:COP)

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 75,560 put options on the company. This is an increase of 339% compared to the average daily volume of 17,220 put options.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in COP. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter worth $511,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 27.2% in the fourth quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 12,967 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,286,000 after acquiring an additional 2,770 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the fourth quarter worth $161,000. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 13,401 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,329,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,192 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $865,000 after acquiring an additional 1,028 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.36% of the company's stock.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

COP stock traded down $0.48 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $85.12. 20,169,963 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,395,001. ConocoPhillips has a twelve month low of $79.88 and a twelve month high of $118.40. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $97.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.64.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 17.26% and a net margin of 16.23%. The company had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $15.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.05 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.67%. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on COP shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $95.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $127.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $114.00 to $107.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, ConocoPhillips currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $121.63.

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.