ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) Shares Down 1.3% – Here’s What Happened

ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM)’s share price dropped 1.3% during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $173.60 and last traded at $174.7020. 11,195,117 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 38% from the average daily volume of 17,984,707 shares. The stock had previously closed at $177.01.

Key ExxonMobil News

Here are the key news stories impacting ExxonMobil this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $185 and upgraded XOM to “overweight,” citing an estimated 6.1% upside from recent levels. The move adds institutional support ahead of earnings. Morgan Stanley ExxonMobil price target article
• Positive Sentiment: Exxon’s third-quarter outlook remains favorable, with elevated crude prices, strong refining conditions, Permian growth, additional Guyana capacity and LNG expansion potentially supporting another earnings beat and stronger free cash flow. Exxon Q3 preview
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded Exxon to Rank #2, or “Buy,” reflecting improving expectations for the company’s earnings prospects. Erste Group Bank also increased its FY2026 and FY2027 EPS forecasts. Zacks Exxon rating upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Exxon’s integrated business and project pipeline support dividend resilience. Analysts highlighted the company’s ability to generate cash beyond upstream oil production, while Trinidad could provide another long-term growth opportunity after Guyana. Exxon Trinidad growth article
• Neutral Sentiment: Guyana’s shift beyond cost recovery may reduce reported entitlement volumes but could improve margins and free cash flow, making the accounting and production impact important to upcoming results.
• Negative Sentiment: Valuation is limiting enthusiasm. One analysis argues XOM’s premium normalized P/E leaves insufficient upside after its strong rally, while other coverage questions whether current earnings can justify a multiple near that of the broader market. ExxonMobil valuation article
• Negative Sentiment: The EIA’s projection for oil near $79 per barrel by 2027 raises downside concerns for upstream earnings, even though Exxon’s dividend is viewed as sustainable in that scenario. Exxon dividend and oil price article
• Negative Sentiment: Chemicals remain a risk: earnings improved sharply, but volumes declined and margins remain below historical levels, leaving profitability vulnerable if North American feedstock advantages narrow.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on XOM shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on ExxonMobil from $184.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, August 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of ExxonMobil from $158.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of ExxonMobil to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 5th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price objective on shares of ExxonMobil from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group set a $172.00 price objective on shares of ExxonMobil in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ExxonMobil has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $165.13.

ExxonMobil Stock Down 1.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market cap of $724.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a fifty day moving average of $162.92 and a 200 day moving average of $154.39.

ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The oil and gas company reported $3.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.56 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $114.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.94 billion. ExxonMobil had a net margin of 8.88% and a return on equity of 13.14%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.64 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that ExxonMobil Corporation will post 12.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ExxonMobil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 17th were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. ExxonMobil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.02%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ExxonMobil

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in XOM. GQG Partners LLC increased its position in ExxonMobil by 153.3% in the second quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 16,877,523 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,307,497,000 after buying an additional 10,214,420 shares in the last quarter. Quantum Portfolio Management LLC purchased a new stake in ExxonMobil in the 1st quarter worth approximately $965,932,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership purchased a new stake in ExxonMobil in the 1st quarter worth approximately $766,345,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in ExxonMobil by 17,312.4% during the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,183,864 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $370,514,000 after acquiring an additional 2,171,322 shares during the period. Finally, Employees Provident Fund Board bought a new stake in ExxonMobil during the 4th quarter worth approximately $238,970,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

ExxonMobil Company Profile

Exxon Mobil Corporation, commonly known as ExxonMobil, is an integrated energy company engaged in the exploration, development, production and sale of crude oil and natural gas. The company also manufactures and markets fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and specialty products used in transportation, industrial and consumer applications.

ExxonMobil operates across the energy value chain through businesses that include upstream oil and natural gas production, refining and fuels marketing, chemical manufacturing, and lower-carbon solutions.