NEW YORK, Jan 5, 2026, 04:55 ET — Premarket
- COP rose in early premarket dealing as investors weighed a potential shift in U.S. policy toward Venezuela’s oil sector.
- The rally extends Friday’s gain and puts the stock back within reach of key chart levels.
- Focus now turns to Washington’s next steps on sanctions and ConocoPhillips’ Feb. 5 earnings update.
ConocoPhillips shares were up 6.5% at $102.99 in premarket trading, according to Public.com data. Premarket trading takes place before the regular U.S. session opens at 9:30 a.m. ET, when liquidity is typically thinner and bid-ask spreads can widen.
The move follows weekend developments in Venezuela that have put U.S. oil companies’ long-running expropriation claims back on the radar. U.S. officials have told oil executives that a return to Venezuela would likely require significant upfront investment before firms can expect to recover money tied to past nationalizations, two people familiar with the outreach told Reuters.
That matters for ConocoPhillips because Venezuela has been a lingering headline risk and potential upside option for years, rather than a core operating driver. Investors are now trying to handicap the size, timing and strings attached to any recovery, at a time when energy equities are highly sensitive to policy shifts and crude-price direction.
Oil prices slipped early Monday despite the geopolitical shock. Brent was down 0.8% at $60.26 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate fell 0.9% to $56.79, Reuters reported. “Any meaningful recovery in Venezuelan output is likely to take considerable time,” UBS strategist Giovanni Staunovo said, while Raymond James analysts said production could rise by a few hundred thousand barrels per day by end-2026 but would require significant investment.
For COP, that backdrop cuts both ways. A clearer route to settle claims could support the stock, but softer crude prices can quickly offset sentiment in the sector because upstream producers’ cash flow is tied closely to oil and gas benchmarks.
The stock closed Friday at $96.70, up 3.3% on the day, after trading between $93.13 and $96.94, with about 7.0 million shares changing hands. That left the stock about 9% below its 52-week high of $106.20, a level some traders treat as near-term resistance after sharp moves.
Investors will watch whether the early premarket bid holds once the opening bell brings deeper liquidity. They will also be scanning for fresh signals on sanctions and any company commentary that clarifies what, if anything, might change operationally in Venezuela.
But the Venezuela trade carries obvious downside scenarios. If policy stays restrictive or the political transition turns messy, the timeline for any recovery could stretch out while raising legal, security and capital risks, and an eventual rise in Venezuelan supply would add to longer-term pressure on crude prices.
