Franklin Resources Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 13.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 35,662,602 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,140,046 shares during the period. Exxon Mobil makes up about 1.1% of Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.81% of Exxon Mobil worth $3,836,226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Keystone Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exxon Mobil during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Compass Planning Associates Inc bought a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter worth $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on XOM shares. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group cut their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $149.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Exxon Mobil from $145.00 to $140.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $117.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Exxon Mobil currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of Exxon Mobil stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $231,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Exxon Mobil Stock Performance

Shares of XOM opened at $117.66 on Monday. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 12 month low of $103.67 and a 12 month high of $126.34. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $110.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $113.74. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The company has a market cap of $510.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.01, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.83.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $2.48 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement

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

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.