Fruth Investment Management Sells 1,197 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Fruth Investment Management lowered its position in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 1.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 85,747 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,197 shares during the quarter. Exxon Mobil accounts for approximately 2.5% of Fruth Investment Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $9,223,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Exxon Mobil in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the 3rd quarter worth about $54,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the third quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, Annapolis Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 284.9% in the third quarter. Annapolis Financial Services LLC now owns 766 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $90,000 after acquiring an additional 567 shares in the last quarter. 61.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Exxon Mobil

In other news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $137.00 to $134.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $139.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Exxon Mobil presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of XOM stock opened at $108.87 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $478.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.89, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.31. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.97. Exxon Mobil Co. has a twelve month low of $100.42 and a twelve month high of $126.34.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by ($0.10). Exxon Mobil had a return on equity of 12.92% and a net margin of 9.63%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.37 EPS for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 50.51%.

Exxon Mobil 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.