Piper Sandler Has Lowered Expectations for ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Stock Price

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Free Report) had its price objective reduced by Piper Sandler from $135.00 to $114.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has an overweight rating on the energy producer's stock.

COP has been the topic of a number of other reports. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $148.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $140.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, September 13th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays upped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $138.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $136.71.

ConocoPhillips Price Performance

Shares of ConocoPhillips stock traded down $0.67 on Thursday, hitting $95.18. The company's stock had a trading volume of 9,828,586 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,062,585. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.30. ConocoPhillips has a 1 year low of $95.10 and a 1 year high of $135.18. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $106.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $109.31. The company has a market capitalization of $109.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.10. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $13.97 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.16 EPS. ConocoPhillips's revenue was down 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 7.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 11th were given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This is a boost from ConocoPhillips's previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.28%. ConocoPhillips's dividend payout ratio is 37.10%.

Insider Buying and Selling at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director R A. Walker bought 10,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 38,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,716,400. This represents a 37.68 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of ConocoPhillips

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of ConocoPhillips in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Stephens Consulting LLC increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 69.3% in the second quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 254 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Y.D. More Investments Ltd purchased a new stake in ConocoPhillips during the second quarter valued at about $35,000. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.