Verity & Verity LLC Purchases 12,667 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Verity & Verity LLC boosted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM - Free Report) by 8.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 157,519 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after buying an additional 12,667 shares during the period. Exxon Mobil makes up about 1.5% of Verity & Verity LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Verity & Verity LLC's holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $16,944,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Exxon Mobil during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Hershey Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Exxon Mobil in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company's stock.

Exxon Mobil Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:XOM traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $112.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 19,228,798 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,346,318. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 1 year low of $95.77 and a 1 year high of $126.34. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $112.56 and a 200-day moving average of $115.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $493.89 billion, a PE ratio of 13.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.91.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $90.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $93.98 billion. Exxon Mobil had a net margin of 9.61% and a return on equity of 14.73%. The company's revenue was down .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.27 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.99 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. This is an increase from Exxon Mobil's previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. Exxon Mobil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 49.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on XOM. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Exxon Mobil from $132.00 to $128.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $142.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Scotiabank raised shares of Exxon Mobil from a "sector perform" rating to a "sector outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $129.00 to $145.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $117.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $128.84.

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.