Chevron Corporation $CVX Shares Sold by Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC cut its Chevron stake by 34.4%, selling 47,111 shares and leaving 89,997 shares worth about $13.7 million at quarter-end.
• Significant insider selling occurred: CEO Michael K. Wirth sold 272,624 shares (~$51.6M) on March 2, and insiders have sold 779,407 shares (~$146M) over the past 90 days, leaving insiders with roughly 0.56% ownership.
• Operational and strategic developments are mixed: Wheatstone LNG has fully resumed production, improving near-term cash flow, while an announced asset-swap to expand Chevron’s Venezuelan heavy-oil stake faces a public dispute with partner Suelopetrol, raising execution and geopolitical risk.

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC reduced its position in shares of Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX - Free Report) by 34.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 89,997 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 47,111 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC's holdings in Chevron were worth $13,716,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CVX. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Chevron by 17.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 183,790,028 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,540,753,000 after purchasing an additional 27,961,463 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in Chevron by 9.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 152,605,988 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $23,698,184,000 after purchasing an additional 12,789,399 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in Chevron in the third quarter valued at $988,083,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Chevron by 27.9% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 19,627,146 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,047,900,000 after purchasing an additional 4,279,918 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in Chevron by 41.8% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 11,760,376 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,811,333,000 after purchasing an additional 3,464,058 shares during the last quarter. 72.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Stories Impacting Chevron

Here are the key news stories impacting Chevron this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wheatstone LNG has fully resumed production after cyclone repairs, restoring expected cash flow from the Australian LNG asset and removing a short-term production drag. Chevron resumes full production at Wheatstone LNG after repairs for cyclone damage
• Positive Sentiment: Chevron says it reached an asset-swap agreement that expands its stake in Venezuelan heavy oil operations — a move that could lift reserves and long-term production potential if implemented. Chevron Corporation (CVX) Expands Stakes in Venezuela Oil Operations
• Positive Sentiment: Warren Buffett’s ongoing stake and commentary on Chevron continue to be cited as a vote of confidence for long-term investors, supporting sentiment versus peers. Deepening Growth Pipeline Sustains Warren Buffett’s Confidence In Chevron (CVX)
• Positive Sentiment: Zacks has highlighted Chevron as a Bull of the Day and it's included in lists of high-flying "old economy" stocks with room to run — analyst attention can help prop up demand in a pullback. Chevron and Avis Budget have been highlighted as Zacks Bull and Bear of the Day
• Neutral Sentiment: Chevron is a trending stock with increased retail and analyst attention; that raises liquidity and volatility but is ambivalent for direction without fresh catalysts. Chevron Corporation (CVX) Is a Trending Stock: Facts to Know Before Betting on It
• Negative Sentiment: Venezuelan partner Suelopetrol says it was not informed of Chevron’s reported expansion — a public dispute that raises execution, legal and geopolitical risk around the asset-swap and could delay realization of the announced upside. Suelopetrol says it has not been Informed of Chevron’s (CVX) Expansion at Venezuela Joint Venture
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks preview flags an expected decline in Q1 earnings, which raises the risk of a disappointing release and near-term downside if results or guidance miss. Earnings Preview: Chevron (CVX) Q1 Earnings Expected to Decline
• Negative Sentiment: After a strong YTD rally, articles note a month-long cooldown and profit-taking in big oil names; that broader flow explains part of today’s pullback even without company-specific bad news. Exxon Stock and Chevron Stock Are Up 20%+ YTD – Why the Long Oil Trade Is Stalling Out

Insider Activity

In other Chevron news, insider Andrew Benjamin Walz sold 11,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $188.58, for a total transaction of $2,187,528.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael K. Wirth sold 272,624 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $189.35, for a total value of $51,621,354.40. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 31,266 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,920,217.10. This trade represents a 89.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 779,407 shares of company stock valued at $145,972,971 in the last 90 days. 0.56% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Chevron Price Performance

CVX stock opened at $185.13 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $192.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $170.28. Chevron Corporation has a 12-month low of $133.77 and a 12-month high of $214.71. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $368.82 billion, a PE ratio of 27.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.60.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.08. Chevron had a return on equity of 7.89% and a net margin of 6.51%.The firm had revenue of $45.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.06 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Chevron Corporation will post 12.49 EPS for the current year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were given a dividend of $1.78 per share. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. This is a boost from Chevron's previous quarterly dividend of $1.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 17th. Chevron's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 106.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on CVX shares. Zacks Research upgraded Chevron from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 3rd. HSBC upgraded Chevron from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $215.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Chevron from $174.00 to $212.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Chevron from $214.00 to $204.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Chevron from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $198.09.

About Chevron

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.

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