ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.20 EPS

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The energy producer reported $1.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.78 by $0.20, Zacks reports. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 17.29% and a return on equity of 19.53%.

ConocoPhillips Stock Down 0.3 %

COP traded down $0.28 during trading on Thursday, hitting $99.93. The company had a trading volume of 8,517,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,788,718. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $101.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $106.32. ConocoPhillips has a one year low of $94.23 and a one year high of $135.18. The company has a market capitalization of $115.01 billion, a PE ratio of 11.88, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34.

ConocoPhillips Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 3rd. Investors of record on Monday, February 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.78 per share. This represents a $3.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.12%. ConocoPhillips’s payout ratio is 37.10%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Arjun N. Murti purchased 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 20th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $95.87 per share, for a total transaction of $239,675.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 21,500 shares in the company, valued at $2,061,205. This trade represents a 13.16 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director R A. Walker bought 10,400 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $97.80 per share, for a total transaction of $1,017,120.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 38,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,716,400. The trade was a 37.68 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on COP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $120.00 to $123.00 in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Mizuho upgraded ConocoPhillips from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $132.00 to $134.00 in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays lifted their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on ConocoPhillips from $135.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips from $138.00 to $139.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $135.89.

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.