ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) PT Lowered to $147.00 at Susquehanna

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) had its target price decreased by Susquehanna from $154.00 to $147.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Susquehanna currently has a positive rating on the energy producer’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on COP. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an outperform rating and a $145.00 target price on the stock. Argus upgraded ConocoPhillips to a strong-buy rating in a report on Friday, June 7th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Barclays upped their price target on ConocoPhillips from $158.00 to $160.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $132.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $143.24.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 1.3 %

Shares of COP opened at $106.05 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.33. ConocoPhillips has a 52 week low of $102.27 and a 52 week high of $135.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.01, a PEG ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.22. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $111.20 and a 200-day moving average of $116.94.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The energy producer reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $14.14 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.96 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.84 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that ConocoPhillips will post 8.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were paid a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 26.27%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total transaction of $6,000,105.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 455,909 shares in the company, valued at $49,288,321.99. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of ConocoPhillips

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 35.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,192,580 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $4,097,473,000 after acquiring an additional 8,479,963 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in ConocoPhillips by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 27,672,104 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $3,211,901,000 after purchasing an additional 108,956 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its stake in ConocoPhillips by 9.6% during the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,252,822 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $2,705,059,000 after purchasing an additional 1,856,085 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 5.8% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,986,970 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $1,907,542,000 after buying an additional 826,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 12,011,035 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $1,394,162,000 after buying an additional 270,859 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.