Track market-moving stories before they get noisy

In the latest trading session, ConocoPhillips (COP - Free Report) closed at $120.20, marking a +1.19% move from the previous day. The stock's performance was ahead of the S&P 500's daily loss of 1.21%. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a drop of 0.97%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw a decrease of 2.15%.

Prior to today's trading, shares of the energy company had gained 11.1% outpaced the Oils-Energy sector's gain of 5.23% and the S&P 500's gain of 0.42%.

Investors will be eagerly watching for the performance of ConocoPhillips in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings report is set to be unveiled on August 6, 2026. In that report, analysts expect ConocoPhillips to post earnings of $2.96 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 108.45%. At the same time, our most recent consensus estimate is projecting a revenue of $17.54 billion, reflecting a 18.98% rise from the equivalent quarter last year.

Looking at the full year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $9.2 per share and revenue of $66.91 billion. These totals would mark changes of +49.35% and +8.72%, respectively, from last year.

Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for ConocoPhillips. Such recent modifications usually signify the changing landscape of near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the business and profitability.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To capitalize on this, we've crafted the Zacks Rank, a unique model that incorporates these estimate changes and offers a practical rating system.

The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 8.78% lower. As of now, ConocoPhillips holds a Zacks Rank of #4 (Sell).

From a valuation perspective, ConocoPhillips is currently exchanging hands at a Forward P/E ratio of 12.91. This denotes a discount relative to the industry average Forward P/E of 19.19.

We can also see that COP currently has a PEG ratio of 1.43. The PEG ratio bears resemblance to the frequently used P/E ratio, but this parameter also includes the company's expected earnings growth trajectory. As the market closed yesterday, the Oil and Gas - Integrated - United States industry was having an average PEG ratio of 1.96.

The Oil and Gas - Integrated - United States industry is part of the Oils-Energy sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 205, putting it in the bottom 17% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.

BP and ConocoPhillips are set to announce billions of dollars of new investments in Iraq on Friday as Washington seeks to bolster the country's energy sector and reduce the region's reliance on routes vulnerable to Iranian disruption, according to people familiar with the plans. 

The announcements are expected during the U.S.-Iraq Business Summit in Washington, CNBC's Brian Sullivan told Access Middle East, citing sources. Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi will meet senior U.S. officials and executives from major energy companies at the summit. 

The event is expected to feature more than $60 billion in agreements and memorandums of understanding between U.S. companies and the Iraqi government. 

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The investments by BP, ConocoPhillips and other companies will be in billions of dollars, and might even be in tens of billions, the people said. Details of the individual commitments were not immediately available. 

The deals come as the U.S seeks to expand investment in Iraq's energy sector, boost the country's oil production and diversify export routes vulnerable to regional disruption.

The Strait of Hormuz handled roughly a fifth of global oil before the war broke out and has become an increasingly important focus for energy markets after renewed tensions between the United States and Iran. 

BP has a history in Iraq dating back about a century and has in recent years focused on the giant Rumaila oilfield. In 2025, the company finalized an agreement with Baghdad to redevelop oil and gas resources in Kirkuk, covering the Baba and Avanah domes of the Kirkuk field and the nearby Bai Hassan, Jambur and Khabbaz fields.

Iraq is courting some of the world's largest energy-services and industrial companies as it seeks to expand oil and gas production and accelerate development of its natural gas resources.

Al-Zaidi met representatives from Halliburton, Shell, Honeywell, Weatherford and Baker Hughes in Houston on Thursday, with talks covering investment, technology and potential participation in large energy projects, according to his office.

— CNBC's Emma Graham contributed to this report.

Shell (SHEL +0.95%) recently released its latest outlook for the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market. The energy giant noted that while the war-driven closure of the Strait of Hormuz will cause LNG demand to flatten out this year, it expects growth to resume in 2027 and rise 65% by 2050.

Here’s a look at Shell’s latest outlook and some LNG stocks capitalizing on this growth trend.

Image source: Getty Images.

A war-driven speedbumpAbout 20% of global LNG volumes flowed through the Strait of Hormuz before the U.S. and Israel launched military strikes against Iran earlier this year. Iran has retaliated by attacking ships trying to exit the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz, causing a steep drop in LNG traffic. Iran also attacked LNG infrastructure in Qatar, causing damage that could knock out 17% of its capacity for up to five years. ExxonMobil (XOM +0.37%) owned minority interests in two of the damaged LNG trains, while Shell holds a stake in a damaged gas-to-liquids facility.

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U.S. LNG shippers have helped offset some of this supply disruption by ramping up exports, including a record 11.7 million metric tons (MT) in March. Meanwhile, U.S. export capacity got a boost in April when ExxonMobil and its partner QatarEnergy loaded the first cargo at their recently completed Golden Pass terminal.

Despite the surge in U.S. LNG exports, Shell expects that global LNG demand will be similar to last year’s level. That assumes shipping through the Strait of Hormuz returns to normal later this summer.

While Shell sees flat demand this year, it expects growth to return to normal in 2027. It foresees growth continuing through 2050, when demand is projected to reach 700 million tonnes, a 65% increase from 2025 levels. Asia will be the main driver of LNG demand growth. Emerging markets in South and Southeast Asia will increasingly adopt the cleaner-burning fuel in place of coal. Meanwhile, mature markets like Japan will need more LNG to help power data centers.

More LNG investment is neededSeveral energy companies are already building new LNG capacity to meet growing demand. However, Shell estimates that energy companies will need to build around an additional 200 million tonnes of new supply in the 2030s and 2040s to meet growing demand.

Shell is helping lead the charge to build more global LNG capacity. It has joint venture investments in two expansion projects in Qatar: North Field East (NFE) and North Field South (NFS). It also has a minority stake in the Ruwais LNG project in the UAE. Meanwhile, Shell is evaluating an expansion of the recently completed LNG Canada terminal, which it could approve by the end of this year. As an LNG leader, Shell will likely continue to pursue new investments to grow global LNG capacity.

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Meanwhile, LNG is one of ExxonMobil’s long-term growth catalysts. As noted, Exxon and QatarEnergy recently completed the Golden Pass LNG project. It’s also a partner with Shell on QatarEnergy’s NFE project. These projects are key drivers supporting its growth plan to 2030. Additionally, Exxon expects new LNG project start-ups in Papua New Guinea and Mozambique to fuel growth beyond 2030. Exxon is also reportedly evaluating a potential acquisition of Woodside Energy, which has leading LNG operations in Australia and a large-scale LNG development project in the U.S. (Louisiana LNG).

ConocoPhillips (COP +0.09%) is also expanding its global LNG platform. The U.S. oil and gas giant owns interests in the NFS and NFE projects. Additionally, it has an equity interest in Port Arthur LNG (phase 1) and an LNG supply contract for phase 2. The company also has an LNG supply agreement for Rio Grande LNG (Train 5). Those contracts are part of its aspiration to build a 10 to 15 MT per year portfolio of commercial LNG supply contracts from third-party facilities.

Capitalizing on growing global LNG demandWhile LNG demand will flatten out this year due to supply disruptions stemming from the Strait of Hormuz closure, growth should resume next year and continue through 2050. That’s providing Shell, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, and other large energy companies with multiple LNG investment opportunities. These investments should help fuel their growth in the coming decades, making them compelling energy stocks to buy and hold for the long term.