Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Trading 0.6% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) shot up 0.6% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $105.64 and last traded at $106.03. 3,339,372 shares changed hands during 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

XOM has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. HSBC reduced their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Exxon Mobil from $137.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on Exxon Mobil from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $108.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.98. The company has a market cap 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.68%. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of Exxon Mobil stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total transaction of $231,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. 10Elms LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Exxon Mobil in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Exxon Mobil during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

About Exxon Mobil

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.