Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Trading Up 1.4% – Here’s Why

Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX)’s stock price shot up 1.4% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $157.85 and last traded at $157.38. 1,446,213 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 7,117,575 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.14.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on Chevron from $184.00 to $173.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Chevron in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Chevron from $174.00 to $171.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. DZ Bank raised shares of Chevron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Chevron from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Chevron has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.13.

Chevron Stock Up 1.2 %

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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $151.44. The stock has a market cap of $279.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.11.

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 firm earned $3.45 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Chevron Co. will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Chevron’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.31%. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.37%.

Insider Activity at Chevron

In other Chevron news, VP Jeff B. Gustavson sold 9,325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.50, for a total value of $1,422,062.50. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,057 shares in the company, valued at approximately $161,192.50. The trade was a 89.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chevron

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CVX. IMG Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Chevron during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Chevron during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Rational Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Chevron during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Chevron in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, 10Elms LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Chevron during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.42% of the company’s stock.

About Chevron

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.