Congress Asset Management Co. Decreases Stake in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Congress Asset Management Co. cut its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM - Free Report) by 89.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 96,970 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 851,826 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co.'s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $10,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 7,761.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 6,893,677 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $808,077,000 after acquiring an additional 6,805,982 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 1,524.1% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,445,922 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $585,818,000 after acquiring an additional 5,110,603 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 16.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 31,522,556 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $3,936,929,000 after acquiring an additional 4,415,012 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 168.5% during the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,530,457 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $531,060,000 after acquiring an additional 2,842,844 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 11,131.0% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,792,811 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $192,853,000 after acquiring an additional 1,776,848 shares during the period. 61.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exxon Mobil Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of XOM stock traded down $1.33 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $110.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 14,676,984 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,010,274. The stock has a market capitalization of $486.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.89. Exxon Mobil Co. has a one year low of $102.88 and a one year high of $126.34. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $108.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.52. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $2.48 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 EPS for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be given a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Exxon Mobil's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.51%.

Insider Activity at Exxon Mobil

In other Exxon Mobil news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the business's 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,087 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen cut their price target on Exxon Mobil from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 16th. HSBC cut their target price on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank cut their target price on Exxon Mobil from $145.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $123.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Exxon Mobil currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $129.25.

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.