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

Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $292.88 and last traded at $292.5640, with a volume of 2,608,585 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $281.47.

Key Phillips 66 News

Here are the key news stories impacting Phillips 66 this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect robust year-over-year earnings growth when Phillips 66 reports third-quarter results on October 28, increasing optimism that stronger refining margins will translate into a significant profit beat. Earnings Preview: What to Expect From Phillips 66’s Report
• Positive Sentiment: A bullish Seeking Alpha analysis argues that Russian supply disruptions and instability in the Gulf could prolong refined-product scarcity and elevated crack spreads. The analyst rates PSX a Buy and estimates a potential value of $346 per share. Phillips 66: Missing A Premium Valuation
• Positive Sentiment: Phillips 66 is expanding the use of artificial intelligence at its refineries to accelerate troubleshooting, improve maintenance and reduce costs. Reported savings already exceed $1 per barrel, offering a potential structural boost to margins and cash flow. Can AI Drive Refining Efficiency & Profits for Phillips 66?
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target to $282 from $216, while JPMorgan lifted its target to $275 from $234. The increases reflect improved earnings expectations, although Barclays retained an Equal Weight rating. JPMorgan Adjusts Price Target on Phillips 66
• Neutral Sentiment: DBS reaffirmed its Hold rating, highlighting that the recent rally has already incorporated much of the expected improvement. DBS Reaffirms Their Hold Rating on Phillips 66
• Negative Sentiment: Union employees at the Bayway refinery overwhelmingly authorized a strike as their contract expiration approaches. A work stoppage could disrupt operations, increase costs and pressure near-term earnings if negotiations fail. Will Phillips 66 Face a Bayway Refinery Strike?
• Negative Sentiment: Some valuation analysis suggests PSX may be overextended after its powerful advance, with strike risks and the possibility of normalized refining margins limiting further upside. Phillips 66 Stock May Be 42% Undervalued As Strike Risks Loom

Analyst Ratings Changes

PSX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Phillips 66 from $217.00 to $297.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen raised Phillips 66 from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Sunday, July 26th. Barclays upped their target price on Phillips 66 from $216.00 to $282.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday. Zacks Research raised Phillips 66 from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, September 7th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on Phillips 66 from $235.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $266.25.

Phillips 66 Stock Up 3.9%

The stock has a market capitalization of $116.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.67 and a beta of 0.71. 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’s fifty day moving average is $251.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $204.92.

Phillips 66 (NYSE:PSX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $9.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.50 by $1.91. The firm had revenue of $51 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.60 billion. Phillips 66 had a net margin of 4.54% and a return on equity of 19.93%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.38 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Phillips 66 will post 29.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Insider Transactions at Phillips 66

In other news, EVP Vanessa Sutherland sold 3,523 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $211.05, for a total transaction of $743,529.15. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 27,537 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,811,683.85. The trade was a 11.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Richard G. Harbison sold 52,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $223.76, for a total value of $11,657,896.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,094 shares in the company, valued at $8,747,673.44. This trade represents a 57.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 112,886 shares of company stock valued at $25,878,894 in the last three months. 0.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Phillips 66

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Perpetual Ltd lifted its stake in Phillips 66 by 71.4% during the third quarter. Perpetual Ltd now owns 9,947 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,540,000 after buying an additional 4,142 shares in the last quarter. Vertrix Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Phillips 66 in the third quarter worth about $217,000. Moody National Bank Trust Division boosted its holdings in shares of Phillips 66 by 1.9% in the third quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division now owns 3,628 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $926,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Eastern Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Phillips 66 by 12.5% in the third quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,526 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $390,000 after buying an additional 170 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Phillips 66 by 22.4% in the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 55,595 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $9,398,000 after buying an additional 10,186 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.93% of the company’s stock.

About Phillips 66

Phillips 66 is an energy manufacturing and logistics company engaged in the processing, transportation, storage and marketing of energy products. Its operations include refining crude oil into gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, lubricants and other refined products, as well as distributing and marketing fuels under the Phillips 66, 76 and JET brands.

The company also operates midstream infrastructure, including pipelines, terminals, processing facilities and storage assets that support the movement of crude oil, natural gas liquids and refined products.