Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Trading Down 1% Following Analyst Downgrade

Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) dropped 1% during mid-day trading on Friday after Scotiabank lowered their price target on the stock from $140.00 to $115.00. Scotiabank currently has a sector outperform rating on the stock. Exxon Mobil traded as low as $98.79 and last traded at $98.94. Approximately 5,120,042 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 15,943,571 shares. The stock had previously closed at $99.93.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Barclays dropped their target price on Exxon Mobil from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. HSBC cut their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $141.00 to $138.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $131.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.95.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $231,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,989,570. This trade represents a 10.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Exxon Mobil

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rockline Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Rockline Wealth Management LLC now owns 25,918 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,788,000 after purchasing an additional 1,498 shares during the last quarter. Renasant Bank grew its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Renasant Bank now owns 10,369 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,115,000 after purchasing an additional 493 shares during the period. Helen Stephens Group LLC increased its position in Exxon Mobil by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. Helen Stephens Group LLC now owns 41,637 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,479,000 after buying an additional 2,825 shares during the last quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter valued at $543,000. Finally, Czech National Bank grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 952,944 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $102,508,000 after acquiring an additional 47,893 shares during the period. 61.80% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Exxon Mobil Trading Up 3.1 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average of $110.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.19. The company has a market cap of $445.70 billion, a PE ratio of 13.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the prior year, the firm posted $2.48 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 EPS for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a $0.99 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.84%. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.