Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Trading Up 0.6% – Still a Buy?

Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)’s stock price traded up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $105.64 and last traded at $106.03. 3,339,372 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 78% from the average session volume of 14,922,236 shares. The stock had previously closed at $105.44.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bernstein Bank lifted their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $138.00 to $127.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. HSBC reduced their price target on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Exxon Mobil from $149.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Exxon Mobil presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil Stock Up 2.1 %

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $108.98 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $467.05 billion, a PE ratio of 13.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.89.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.77 by ($0.10). Exxon Mobil had a net margin of 9.63% and a return on equity of 12.92%. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.48 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a $0.99 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.68%. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.51%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $231,000.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,989,570. This represents a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exxon Mobil

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,936,737,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 43,983,110 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,731,263,000 after acquiring an additional 5,538,694 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Exxon Mobil by 1,524.1% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,445,922 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $585,818,000 after purchasing an additional 5,110,603 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in Exxon Mobil by 16.3% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 31,522,556 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,936,929,000 after purchasing an additional 4,415,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 46,017,358 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,950,087,000 after purchasing an additional 2,998,892 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Exxon Mobil Company Profile

Exxon Mobil Corporation engages in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas in the United States and internationally. It operates through Upstream, Energy Products, Chemical Products, and Specialty Products segments. The Upstream segment explores for and produces crude oil and natural gas.