JPMorgan Chase & Co. Reaffirms Neutral Rating for ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated their neutral rating on shares of ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $126.00 price target on the energy producer’s stock, down from their previous price target of $139.00.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Mizuho decreased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $132.00 to $129.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an outperform rating and a $145.00 target price for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $147.00 to $132.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. StockNews.com lowered ConocoPhillips from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price target on ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $137.12.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 1.2 %

COP opened at $110.49 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.21. The business has a 50-day moving average of $109.06 and a two-hundred day moving average of $115.47. ConocoPhillips has a 12 month low of $101.29 and a 12 month high of $135.18.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last posted its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $14.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.96 billion. ConocoPhillips had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 18.18%. The firm’s revenue was up 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.84 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.02 earnings per share for the current year.

ConocoPhillips Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 12th were given a dividend of $0.58 per share. This represents a $2.32 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 12th. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is currently 25.86%.

Insider Activity at ConocoPhillips

In related news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total transaction of $6,000,105.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $49,288,321.99. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ConocoPhillips

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cooksen Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 69.3% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 254 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 1st quarter worth $31,000. Northwest Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in ConocoPhillips during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in ConocoPhillips by 150.0% during the 1st quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 250 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is 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.