Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Stock

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) had its price target hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $116.00 to $118.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the energy producer’s stock.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. TD Cowen began coverage on ConocoPhillips in a research note on Friday, January 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on ConocoPhillips from $133.00 to $120.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of ConocoPhillips in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $131.00 to $116.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $115.00 to $95.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $124.89.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

NYSE:COP opened at $88.58 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. ConocoPhillips has a fifty-two week low of $79.88 and a fifty-two week high of $122.56. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $93.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.37. The stock has a market cap of $111.98 billion, a PE ratio of 11.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 0.64.

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy producer reported $2.09 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.04. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 16.23% and a return on equity of 17.26%. The company had revenue of $16.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.74 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.05 earnings per share. Analysts expect that ConocoPhillips will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ConocoPhillips Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 19th will be given a dividend of $0.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.64%.

Institutional Trading of ConocoPhillips

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 2.3% in 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 purchasing an additional 32,948 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 11.1% during the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 1,655 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $164,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of ConocoPhillips by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 168,719 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $17,763,000 after buying an additional 1,838 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its holdings in shares of ConocoPhillips by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 3,608 shares of the energy producer’s stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 436 shares during the period. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in ConocoPhillips by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 1,790 shares of the energy producer’s stock worth $178,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. 82.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ConocoPhillips Company Profile

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.