ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Given Consensus Recommendation of "Buy" by Brokerages

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the eighteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, fifteen have issued a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $136.71.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on COP. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $145.00 to $138.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Monday, December 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $128.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Barclays increased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of ConocoPhillips from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $120.00 to $123.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 5th.

ConocoPhillips Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of COP stock traded down $0.06 during trading on Friday, hitting $95.12. 29,540,166 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,158,532. The firm has a market capitalization of $109.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 1.18. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $94.23 and a 52-week high of $135.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $106.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $109.06.

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

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In other ConocoPhillips news, Director R A. Walker acquired 10,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $97.80 per share, with a total value of $1,017,120.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 38,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,716,400. This trade represents a 37.68 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Arjun N. Murti acquired 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 21,500 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,061,205. This trade represents a 13.16 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in COP. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in ConocoPhillips by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,474,270 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $155,211,000 after acquiring an additional 32,948 shares during the last quarter. IMS Capital Management increased its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 20.1% in the third quarter. IMS Capital Management now owns 2,991 shares of the energy producer's stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Syntax Research Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the third quarter worth approximately $3,235,000. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 4.7% during the third quarter. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. now owns 2,884 shares of the energy producer's stock worth $304,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in ConocoPhillips in the 3rd quarter valued at $4,698,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.36% of the company's stock.

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.