Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Stock Price Down 1.4% - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Chevron's stock price decreased by 1.4% on Thursday, closing at $151.63 with a trading volume down 32% from the average.
• The company recently reported a net margin of 7.02% and earnings per share of $1.77, exceeding analysts' expectations despite a 12.4% decline in year-over-year revenue.
• Chevron declared a quarterly dividend of $1.71, resulting in an annualized yield of 4.5% and a payout ratio of 88.03%.

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX - Get Free Report) shares traded down 1.4% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $151.56 and last traded at $151.63. 6,163,357 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 32% from the average session volume of 9,017,828 shares. The stock had previously closed at $153.74.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVX has been the topic of several research reports. Barclays dropped their price target on Chevron from $160.00 to $158.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Melius Research initiated coverage on Chevron in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $178.00 price target on shares of Chevron in a report on Friday, August 1st. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Chevron in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Chevron from $186.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Chevron currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $165.40.

Chevron Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $156.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $148.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $262.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 0.84.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.19. Chevron had a net margin of 7.02% and a return on equity of 9.90%. The company had revenue of $44.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $44.59 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.55 EPS. The company's revenue was down 12.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Chevron Corporation will post 10.79 EPS for the current year.

Chevron Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 19th were paid a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.5%. Chevron's dividend payout ratio is 88.03%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director John B. Hess sold 375,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.30, for a total value of $59,362,500.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,403,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $222,102,023.50. This represents a 21.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Alana K. Knowles sold 3,978 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $160.00, for a total transaction of $636,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,181 shares in the company, valued at $188,960. This trade represents a 77.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chevron

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of Chevron by 420.7% in the first quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 151 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Elequin Capital LP bought a new stake in Chevron in the first quarter worth $31,000. Quaker Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Chevron by 197.7% in the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 217 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Chevron by 86.1% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 255 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Chevron by 52.3% in the second quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 265 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. 72.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Chevron

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification of liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas; and carbon capture and storage, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.