ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Sets New 52-Week High - What's Next?

Key Points

• ConocoPhillips reached a new 52-week high of $146.70, with the stock later trading near $145.34. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, though the average price target of $143.62 is below the recent trading level.
• The company reported strong quarterly results, posting adjusted EPS of $3.24 versus the $2.90 estimate and revenue of $19.52 billion, up 32.4% year over year.
• ConocoPhillips recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.84 per share, equivalent to an annualized $3.36 dividend and a 2.3% yield; institutional investors own 82.36% of the company.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday. The company traded as high as $146.70 and last traded at $145.34, with a volume of 4,342,119 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $146.51.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on ConocoPhillips from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 17th. Freedom Capital raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $130.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $138.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $143.62.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.8%

The stock has a market cap of $174.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.54. The company's 50-day moving average price is $132.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.46.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.34. The firm had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.79 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 14.22%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 32.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.42 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 11.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.44%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other news, SVP Andrew Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total value of $1,282,168.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,593 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,296,493.95. The trade was a 49.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 73.2% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 118,591,447 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $12,328,767,000 after purchasing an additional 50,116,727 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 93,886,457 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $9,760,436,000 after buying an additional 2,712,703 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 12.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 15,072,154 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,566,901,000 after buying an additional 1,609,759 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 11,044,489 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,457,978,000 after buying an additional 74,261 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 10.8% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 10,181,950 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $1,344,017,000 after buying an additional 995,392 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

ConocoPhillips NYSE: COP is an independent exploration and production company engaged in finding, developing and producing oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. Unlike integrated energy companies, it primarily focuses on upstream activities rather than operating large refining or retail fuel businesses.

The company's portfolio includes conventional and unconventional oil and natural gas assets, liquefied natural gas-related interests, oil sands operations and other energy resources.

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