Essex Financial Services Inc. Acquires 654 Shares of Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX)

Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 50,088 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 654 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Chevron were worth $7,255,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Chevron in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Rational Advisors LLC bought a new position in Chevron in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Chevron in the third quarter worth about $30,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Chevron during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Chevron during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 72.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Chevron Price Performance

CVX opened at $155.76 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $152.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $150.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $279.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.11. Chevron Co. has a 52-week low of $135.37 and a 52-week high of $167.11.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by ($0.36). Chevron had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 11.44%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.45 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Chevron Co. will post 10.84 EPS for the current year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.39%. This is a positive change from Chevron’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. Chevron’s payout ratio is presently 67.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their target price on Chevron from $195.00 to $194.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Chevron from $188.00 to $184.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Chevron in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $168.00 price target for the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Chevron from $174.00 to $171.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of Chevron from $184.00 to $173.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.13.

Insider Activity at Chevron

In other Chevron news, CEO Michael K. Wirth sold 164,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.13, for a total transaction of $26,357,398.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,280 shares in the company, valued at $685,356.40. The trade was a 97.47 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Chevron Company Profile

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification of liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas; and carbon capture and storage, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant.