Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Stock Price Up 0.5% – Still a Buy?

Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) shot up 0.5% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $108.43 and last traded at $107.86. 3,258,399 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 7,792,758 shares. The stock had previously closed at $107.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on XOM. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $124.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Exxon Mobil from $142.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Exxon Mobil from $137.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $115.00 price target on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Thursday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Exxon Mobil presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $128.74.

Exxon Mobil Stock Up 0.8 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The company has a market capitalization of $475.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.47, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 0.89. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $114.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.77.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last announced its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $90.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $93.98 billion. Exxon Mobil had a return on equity of 14.73% and a net margin of 9.61%. Exxon Mobil’s revenue for the quarter was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.27 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were given a $0.99 dividend. This is a positive change from Exxon Mobil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. Exxon Mobil’s payout ratio is currently 49.32%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Patron Partners LLC raised its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 37,297 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,294,000 after acquiring an additional 2,564 shares during the period. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 10.7% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 47,195 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,532,000 after buying an additional 4,578 shares in the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Exxon Mobil by 5.9% during the second quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 32,751 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,770,000 after buying an additional 1,836 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp grew its position in Exxon Mobil by 79.4% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 859,226 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $98,914,000 after buying an additional 380,399 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 64.6% in the 2nd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 967,618 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $111,392,000 after acquiring an additional 379,747 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Exxon Mobil Company 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.