ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Stock Has Average Price Target of $141.24 According to Analysts

Shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-seven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, seventeen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $142.50.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on COP shares. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $150.00 to $146.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $144.00 to $138.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Argus increased their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $136.00 to $153.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 14th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ConocoPhillips news, SVP Andrew Lundquist sold 9,487 shares of ConocoPhillips stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.15, for a total value of $1,282,168.05. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 9,593 shares in the company, valued at $1,296,493.95. The trade was a 49.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. General Partner Inc. raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 112.3% in the 3rd quarter. General Partner Inc. now owns 4,632 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $580,000 after buying an additional 2,450 shares during the period. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 239.0% during the third quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. now owns 76,436 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $9,566,000 after buying an additional 53,886 shares during the period. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in ConocoPhillips by 82.5% during the third quarter. Baker Tilly Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,119 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 2,314 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 68.6% during the third quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 31,215 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,907,000 after acquiring an additional 12,703 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Adelphi Trust Co increased its position in shares of ConocoPhillips by 26.3% during the third quarter. Adelphi Trust Co now owns 7,717 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,061,000 after acquiring an additional 1,607 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

ConocoPhillips Stock Up 1.3%

Shares of COP opened at $128.41 on Friday. ConocoPhillips has a 52-week low of $85.57 and a 52-week high of $141.62. The company has a market capitalization of $154.26 billion, a PE ratio of 16.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 0.24. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $128.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.84. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The energy producer reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.34. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 14.72% and a net margin of 14.22%.The business had revenue of $19.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.79 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.42 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 32.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that ConocoPhillips will post 10.54 EPS for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were paid a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.44%.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) is an independent exploration and production company engaged in finding, developing and producing crude oil, natural gas, natural gas liquids and liquefied natural gas. Unlike integrated energy companies, ConocoPhillips focuses primarily on upstream activities rather than refining and retail fuel operations.

The company has a diversified portfolio of assets in major producing regions, including the United States, Canada, Australia, Norway and Qatar. Its U.S. operations include oil and gas developments in Alaska and the Lower 48 states, while its international portfolio includes conventional and offshore projects.