U S Wealth Group LLC. Takes $2.56 Million Position in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

U S Wealth Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor purchased 23,759 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,556,000. Exxon Mobil comprises approximately 1.9% of U S Wealth Group LLC.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 8.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 6,709,202 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $786,453,000 after purchasing an additional 521,932 shares during the last quarter. United Bank boosted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 17,920 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,101,000 after purchasing an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 148.7% in the third quarter. Castleark Management LLC now owns 44,200 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,181,000 after buying an additional 26,430 shares in the last quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. DF Dent & Co. Inc. now owns 14,697 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,723,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Passive Capital Management LLC. purchased a new position in Exxon Mobil during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $200,000. 61.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Exxon Mobil Stock Performance

Shares of XOM stock opened at $104.17 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $111.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.81. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 12 month low of $98.75 and a 12 month high of $126.34. 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 $452.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.29, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.60.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last released its quarterly 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 return on equity of 12.92% and a net margin of 9.63%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.48 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were given a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. Exxon Mobil’s payout ratio is currently 50.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $115.00 target price on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group decreased their target price on Exxon Mobil from $149.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $123.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Argus raised shares of Exxon Mobil to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Scotiabank dropped their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $145.00 to $140.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $128.80.

Insider Activity at Exxon Mobil

In other news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the firm’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 transaction of $231,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,989,570. This trade represents a 10.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.03% 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.