Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Shares Up 0.8% - Time to Buy?

Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) shares were up 0.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $111.48 and last traded at $111.18. Approximately 4,493,437 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 14,654,829 shares. The stock had previously closed at $110.30.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on XOM shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Scotiabank dropped their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $145.00 to $140.00 in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Argus raised shares of Exxon Mobil to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their target price 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $486.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.12, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.89. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $108.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $114.52.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) last posted 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 last year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. Exxon Mobil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.51%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Exxon Mobil

In other news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were 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 directly owns 18,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Exxon Mobil

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vertex Planning Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 3.1% in the third quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 2,778 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $326,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 0.9% in the third quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. now owns 9,451 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,108,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 0.7% in the third quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 13,378 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,568,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.6% during the third quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 14,537 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,704,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the period. Finally, West Oak Capital LLC increased its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 16,207 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,743,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. 61.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.