Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Trading Up 2.3% After Analyst Upgrade

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)’s stock price shot up 2.3% on Tuesday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $196.00 to $204.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Chevron traded as high as $178.82 and last traded at $178.11. 18,171,603 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 35% from the average session volume of 13,503,601 shares. The stock had previously closed at $174.03.

CVX has been the subject of several other research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Chevron from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Chevron from $180.00 to $174.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 23rd. HSBC lowered Chevron from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $180.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Chevron from $185.00 to $179.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Chevron from $174.00 to $189.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $174.32.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Alana K. Knowles sold 3,200 shares of Chevron stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total transaction of $544,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,207 shares in the company, valued at approximately $205,190. The trade was a 72.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Eimear P. Bonner sold 7,534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.00, for a total value of $1,280,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 4,366 shares in the company, valued at approximately $742,220. This represents a 63.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 645,924 shares of company stock valued at $102,079,188. Company insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Key Chevron News

Here are the key news stories impacting Chevron this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst bullishness: Wells Fargo raised its price target to $204 and remains overweight, while Goldman Sachs reiterated a Buy, citing structural growth and cash returns that support upside. These broker actions have helped lift investor sentiment. Wells Fargo price target raise (Benzinga) Goldman Sachs Buy rating (TipRanks)
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend & shareholder returns narrative: Coverage highlights Chevron’s consecutive dividend hikes, a 4%+ yield and record shareholder payouts, reinforcing its appeal to income-focused investors. CEO commentary on robust buybacks/payout capacity also supports the rally. CEO interview: record shareholder payout (YouTube) Dividend hike & Venezuela push (Yahoo)
• Positive Sentiment: M&A and fundamentals support: Bullish analyses point to the Hess acquisition and Guyana & Venezuela production growth as durable upstream catalysts that improve cash flow and valuation support. Seeking Alpha and other bull pieces highlight attractive DDM/P‑E-based targets well above current levels. Bull case: Seeking Alpha
• Neutral Sentiment: Q4 results were mixed: Chevron beat EPS estimates modestly (helping sentiment) but reported lower revenue and year-over-year declines in profitability — a mixed read on near-term operating momentum. Q4 earnings (MSN) Earnings presentation (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst positioning: some outlets note growing caution or “hold” views (TD Cowen, HSBC downgrades/holds) — signaling that while momentum exists, valuation and commodity risks cap upside for some investors. TD Cowen price target/hold note (Finviz/The Fly) HSBC cut (Seeking Alpha)
• Negative Sentiment: Oil price weakness: crude slid after eased U.S.–Iran tensions, which pressures near-term upstream cash flow and reduces the industry tailwind for majors like Chevron. That headwind is moderating the upside. Oil slides as Iran war odds cool (Benzinga)
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling & income pressure: A reported CFO stock sale and a Q4 net-income decline add modest caution for some investors focused on governance/near-term earnings trends. Insider selling (American Banking News) Q4 net income drop (Yahoo)

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Chevron by 21.2% during the 2nd quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 34,293 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $4,910,000 after buying an additional 5,990 shares during the period. JSF Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Chevron by 11.1% during the 2nd quarter. JSF Financial LLC now owns 2,553 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $366,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. Hubbell Strickland Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Chevron by 0.7% in the second quarter. Hubbell Strickland Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,081 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,443,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Grimes & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Chevron by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 71,468 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $10,233,000 after purchasing an additional 6,954 shares during the period. Finally, Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC lifted its position in Chevron by 5.1% in the second quarter. Woodmont Investment Counsel LLC now owns 124,238 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $17,790,000 after buying an additional 6,005 shares during the last quarter. 72.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Chevron Trading Up 2.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company has a market cap of $358.63 billion, a PE ratio of 26.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 0.70. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $156.89 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.65.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $45.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.18 billion. Chevron had a return on equity of 8.23% and a net margin of 6.51%.The company’s quarterly revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.06 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Chevron Corporation will post 10.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a $1.78 dividend. This is a boost from Chevron’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Chevron’s payout ratio is currently 106.91%.

Chevron Company Profile

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) is an American multinational energy company engaged in virtually all aspects of the oil and gas industry. As an integrated energy firm, Chevron’s core activities include upstream oil and natural gas exploration and production, midstream transportation and storage, downstream refining and marketing of fuels and lubricants, and petrochemical manufacturing through joint ventures and subsidiaries. The company markets fuels under brands such as Chevron, Texaco and Caltex and supplies a range of products and services to retail customers, industrial users and commercial fleets worldwide.

Chevron traces its corporate lineage to the early petroleum companies that eventually became Standard Oil of California and has evolved through significant mergers and restructurings, including the acquisitions of Gulf Oil and Texaco.