Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eight have given a hold recommendation, eleven have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $129.05.

Several research firms have commented on XOM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Exxon Mobil from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd.

Exxon Mobil Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:XOM opened at $117.66 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $510.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.83. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $110.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Exxon Mobil has a 1 year low of $103.67 and a 1 year high of $126.34.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last announced its earnings results 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 business posted $2.48 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Exxon Mobil will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a $0.99 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.37%. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 50.51%.

Insider Transactions at Exxon Mobil

In other news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Exxon Mobil

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 0.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 151,863,649 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,801,457,000 after buying an additional 395,218 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 93,299,598 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,023,875,000 after buying an additional 1,104,617 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter worth about $6,936,737,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 46,017,358 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,950,087,000 after acquiring an additional 2,998,892 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Exxon Mobil by 14.4% in 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. 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.