Imperial Oil Limited (IMO) - What Are Researchers Saying About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is bearish: Imperial Oil has a consensus “Reduce” rating, with five sells, three holds, one buy and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $116, below the reported $131.84 share price.
• Quarterly results exceeded expectations: Imperial Oil reported earnings of $4.52 per share versus the $2.99 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 43% year over year to $11.31 billion.
• Shareholders received a dividend: The company declared a quarterly dividend of C$0.87 per share, equivalent to an annualized C$3.48 payout and a 2.6% yield.

Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO - Get Free Report) TSE: IMO has received a consensus rating of "Reduce" from the ten analysts that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation, one has assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $116.00.

IMO has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research report on Monday, September 14th. TD Securities reaffirmed a "sell" rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Zacks Research raised Imperial Oil from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a report on Wednesday, September 16th.

Imperial Oil Trading Down 2.8%

NYSEAMERICAN IMO opened at $131.84 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $129.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $126.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.38. Imperial Oil has a one year low of $83.27 and a one year high of $139.44. The firm has a market cap of $62.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.39 and a beta of 0.57.

Imperial Oil (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO - Get Free Report) TSE: IMO last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The energy company reported $4.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.99 by $1.53. Imperial Oil had a net margin of 8.03% and a return on equity of 22.28%. The firm had revenue of $11.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $10.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.86 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 43.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Imperial Oil will post 11.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Imperial Oil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were issued a dividend of C$0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Imperial Oil's dividend payout ratio is 38.09%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Imperial Oil

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sawyer & Company Inc acquired a new position in shares of Imperial Oil during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in shares of Imperial Oil by 1,446.8% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 727 shares of the energy company's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 680 shares during the period. CoreCap Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Imperial Oil by 20.5% during the second quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 954 shares of the energy company's stock worth $107,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the period. Eastern Bank increased its stake in shares of Imperial Oil by 100.0% during the second quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 1,000 shares of the energy company's stock worth $112,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Lazari Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Imperial Oil during the third quarter worth approximately $205,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 20.74% of the company's stock.

About Imperial Oil

Imperial Oil Limited is an integrated Canadian energy company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. Founded in 1880, the company explores for, produces, transports, refines and markets crude oil and natural gas, serving customers primarily in Canada. Imperial is one of the country's largest petroleum companies and has a long-standing relationship with Exxon Mobil Corporation, which is its majority shareholder.

Imperial's upstream operations include oil sands production at the Kearl and Cold Lake projects in Alberta, as well as a significant interest in the Syncrude oil sands mining and upgrading operation.

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