ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) Releases Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.10 EPS

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) issued its earnings results on Thursday. The energy producer reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.68 by $0.10, Briefing.com reports. ConocoPhillips had a net margin of 18.18% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The company had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $13.97 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.16 EPS. ConocoPhillips’s quarterly revenue was down 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

ConocoPhillips Stock Performance

ConocoPhillips stock traded down $1.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $107.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,427,791 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,908,149. 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 12-month low of $101.29 and a 12-month high of $135.18. The company has a market capitalization of $125.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.93, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $108.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $113.17.

ConocoPhillips Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.78 per share. This is an increase from ConocoPhillips’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.58. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. ConocoPhillips’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.86%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on COP. Mizuho raised their price objective on ConocoPhillips from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com downgraded ConocoPhillips from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of ConocoPhillips in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $145.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of ConocoPhillips from $153.00 to $140.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of ConocoPhillips from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $137.47.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Timothy A. Leach sold 55,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.11, for a total value of $6,000,105.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 455,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $49,288,321.99. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.