Argus Investors Counsel Inc. Sells 1,934 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Argus Investors Counsel Inc. decreased its position in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 13.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,266 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 1,934 shares during the quarter. Exxon Mobil accounts for 1.1% of Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Argus Investors Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $1,459,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in XOM. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Exxon Mobil in the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,936,737,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 14,242.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 9,457,554 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,124,787,000 after acquiring an additional 9,391,614 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 43,983,110 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,731,263,000 after acquiring an additional 5,538,694 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 35,662,602 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,836,226,000 after acquiring an additional 4,140,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 46,017,358 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,950,087,000 after acquiring an additional 2,998,892 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

XOM opened at $112.06 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $105.51 and a 200 day moving average of $108.78. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 52-week low of $97.80 and a 52-week high of $126.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The stock has a market cap of $482.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.29, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.49.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The oil and gas company reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by $0.03. Exxon Mobil had a return on equity of 12.92% and a net margin of 9.63%. The company had revenue of $83.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $86.11 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.06 EPS. Exxon Mobil’s revenue was up .1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 EPS for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were given a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 15th. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler downgraded Exxon Mobil from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho dropped their target price on Exxon Mobil from $129.00 to $124.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. UBS Group dropped their target price on Exxon Mobil from $135.00 to $131.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Exxon Mobil from $141.00 to $138.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.50.

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.