Why ConocoPhillips Rallied Today
Key Points
Oil prices were rallying in response to the breakout of war with Iran over the weekend.
The Strait of Hormuz may see ongoing disruption due to the conflict.
However, Conoco's operations won't be affected, given that Conoco has zero operations with direct exposure to the Strait.
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Shares of oil and gas giant ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) rallied on Monday, up as much as much as 5.1% before settling back into a 3.3% gain as of 2:23 p.m. EDT.
Unsurprisingly, today's move is the result of a spike in oil prices triggered by the breakout of this past weekend's conflict with Iran. ConocoPhillips is primarily a U.S.-focused producer, so its supply shouldn't be disrupted by the war.
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ConocoPhillips is among the most U.S.-focused of oil majors
At a $142 billion market cap, most upstream oil producers of that size are diversified across many geographies, including the Middle East. However, ConocoPhillips is among the most exposed to the U.S. among large-cap oil stocks, with about 74% of its 2025 earnings before corporate expenses coming from the lower 48 states, Alaska, and Canada.
Meanwhile, Conoco's Europe, Middle East, and North Africa segment only accounted for 14% of earnings before corporate expenses last year. But that segment combines operations in Norway, far away from the conflict, with operations in Libya. But even the Libyan operations, while located in the Middle East, are on the Mediterranean, and aren't dependent on the Strait of Hormuz.
Cargoes passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway between the coasts of Iran, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates, may be delayed or shut down altogether due to the impact of the war that broke out this past weekend.
As a result, oil prices, which had already been rising into the buildup to the conflict, were up another 5.7% on the day as of this writing.
Image source: Getty Images.
ConocoPhillips remains a core oil segment holding
Investors holding oil stocks both for their dividends and as a hedge against geopolitical conflict like we're seeing today should consider ConocoPhillips as part of that portfolio, especially given its U.S.-centric operations.
Conoco may additionally benefit from January's leadership change in Venezuela, as the country owes Conoco roughly $10 billion in damages stemming from the nationalization of its oil industry decades ago, and has yet to pay.
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Billy Duberstein and/or his clients have positions in ConocoPhillips. The Motley Fool recommends ConocoPhillips. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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