Blue Trust Inc. Buys 21,391 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM - Free Report) by 17.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 143,807 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 21,391 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $16,857,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Strategic Investment Advisors MI lifted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 19,361 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,083,000 after purchasing an additional 1,971 shares in the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Exxon Mobil by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,514 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,067,000 after purchasing an additional 1,812 shares during the period. Legacy Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter valued at about $404,000. Peak Financial Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 16.0% in the 4th quarter. Peak Financial Management Inc. now owns 4,813 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $518,000 after purchasing an additional 665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TI Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. TI Trust Inc. now owns 23,774 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $2,557,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company's stock.

Exxon Mobil Stock Performance

Shares of XOM stock traded up $0.97 during trading on Thursday, reaching $109.64. 5,248,607 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,627,579. The firm's 50-day moving average is $110.91 and its 200 day moving average is $115.33. The company has a market capitalization of $481.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.65, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.91. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 1 year low of $100.42 and a 1 year high of $126.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.01. The firm 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%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.27 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.77 EPS for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th were given a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This is an increase from Exxon Mobil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. Exxon Mobil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 49.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on XOM shares. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $127.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. BNP Paribas lowered Exxon Mobil from a "neutral" rating to an "underperform" rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Exxon Mobil from $118.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $124.00 target price for the company. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded Exxon Mobil from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $129.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $128.84.

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.