ExxonMobil Corporation $XOM Holdings Boosted by Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) by 31.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 82,356 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 19,530 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in ExxonMobil were worth $13,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of XOM. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in ExxonMobil by 5.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 28,364,314 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,812,790,000 after purchasing an additional 1,540,902 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in ExxonMobil by 5.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 24,511,156 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,158,563,000 after acquiring an additional 1,192,386 shares during the period. GQG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in ExxonMobil by 153.3% during the 2nd quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 16,877,523 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,307,497,000 after purchasing an additional 10,214,420 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its holdings in ExxonMobil by 5.9% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 12,376,418 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,099,783,000 after purchasing an additional 693,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service boosted its position in ExxonMobil by 1.8% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 9,664,021 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,321,265,000 after purchasing an additional 166,268 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

More ExxonMobil News

Here are the key news stories impacting ExxonMobil this week:

• Positive Sentiment: ExxonMobil signed a preliminary agreement to evaluate oil opportunities in Venezuela, potentially opening access to significant resources and future production growth. The deal is only exploratory, however, and does not mean the company is returning to full-scale operations. Reuters article
• Neutral Sentiment: The Venezuela opportunity comes with substantial political and asset risks: ExxonMobil has previously lost assets there, and its CEO had called the country “uninvestable.” That history may limit how quickly the company commits capital. The Motley Fool article
• Negative Sentiment: Energy stocks were falling before Tuesday’s open, suggesting sector-wide weakness that could pressure XOM independently of company-specific news. Energy sector update
• Negative Sentiment: ExxonMobil paused work on its planned Texas hydrogen facility amid weak customer demand and uncertainty about federal funding. The delay raises questions about the timing and growth prospects of its low-carbon business. Yahoo Finance article

ExxonMobil Trading Down 0.2%

XOM opened at $164.42 on Wednesday. ExxonMobil Corporation has a twelve month low of $114.19 and a twelve month high of $188.50. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $169.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $670.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.90, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.16.

ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.23 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.12 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $110.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $104.89 billion. ExxonMobil had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 10.24%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 earnings per share. Analysts predict that ExxonMobil Corporation will post 13.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ExxonMobil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a $1.07 dividend. This is a boost from ExxonMobil’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. ExxonMobil’s dividend payout ratio is 43.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on XOM shares. HSBC reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $90.00 price objective on shares of ExxonMobil in a report on Friday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $178.00 target price on shares of ExxonMobil in a research note on Tuesday, October 20th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of ExxonMobil from $155.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 4th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of ExxonMobil from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on shares of ExxonMobil from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, ExxonMobil has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $170.38.

ExxonMobil Profile

ExxonMobil is an integrated energy and chemical company with operations spanning the oil and natural gas value chain. Its businesses explore for and produce crude oil and natural gas, refine and market fuels, and manufacture chemicals and other specialty products. The company’s products include gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, lubricants, petrochemical feedstocks and materials used in a wide range of consumer and industrial applications. ExxonMobil also pursues lower-emission solutions, including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen and lower-emission fuels.