Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) Reaches New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

by · The Markets Daily

Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX – Get Free Report)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $248.98 and last traded at $248.4020, with a volume of 7875 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $244.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on PSX. Guggenheim raised Phillips 66 to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings raised Phillips 66 from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Argus increased their price objective on shares of Phillips 66 from $185.00 to $197.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Phillips 66 from $201.00 to $239.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Phillips 66 from $195.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $206.56.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on Phillips 66

Phillips 66 Trading Up 1.8%

The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $206.11 and its 200-day simple moving average is $182.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $99.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.16, a PEG ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 0.68.

Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $9.41 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.50 by $1.91. The company had revenue of $52.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.60 billion. Phillips 66 had a return on equity of 19.93% and a net margin of 4.54%.During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.38 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Phillips 66 will post 23.86 EPS for the current year.

Phillips 66 Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 18th will be paid a $1.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $5.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Phillips 66’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.95%.

Phillips 66 declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, July 31st that authorizes the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the oil and gas company to buy up to 11.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Vanessa Allen Sutherland sold 3,523 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.05, for a total value of $743,529.15. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 27,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,811,683.85. This represents a 11.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Richard G. Harbison sold 52,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $223.76, for a total transaction of $11,657,896.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,094 shares in the company, valued at $8,747,673.44. This represents a 57.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 100,507 shares of company stock valued at $21,770,810 over the last 90 days. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Phillips 66

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MUFG Securities EMEA plc raised its holdings in Phillips 66 by 113.5% during the 4th quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 16,518 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,131,000 after purchasing an additional 8,783 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Phillips 66 by 478.4% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 63,290 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $8,167,000 after buying an additional 52,348 shares in the last quarter. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of Phillips 66 by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 675,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $87,113,000 after acquiring an additional 10,585 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Phillips 66 by 543.7% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 128,156 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $23,348,000 after acquiring an additional 108,248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Phillips 66 by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 614,059 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $79,238,000 after acquiring an additional 11,960 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.93% of the company’s stock.

Phillips 66 Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX) is an independent energy manufacturing and logistics company engaged primarily in refining, midstream transportation, marketing and chemicals. The company processes crude oil into transportation fuels, lubricants and other petroleum products, operates pipeline and storage infrastructure, and participates in petrochemical production through strategic investments. Phillips 66 serves commercial, industrial and retail customers and positions its operations across the value chain of the downstream energy sector.

The company’s principal activities include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and feedstocks for petrochemical production; operating midstream assets such as pipelines, terminals and fractionators that move and store crude oil and natural gas liquids; and marketing and distributing fuels and lubricants through wholesale and retail channels.

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