Confluence Investment Management LLC Trims Stake in Chevron Corporation $CVX

Confluence Investment Management LLC cut its stake in Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX - Free Report) by 3.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 742,863 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 29,380 shares during the quarter. Chevron makes up approximately 1.9% of Confluence Investment Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Confluence Investment Management LLC's holdings in Chevron were worth $123,137,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of CVX. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Chevron by 9.1% in the 3rd 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 period. Berkshire Hathaway Inc grew its position in Chevron by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc now owns 130,156,362 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $19,837,131,000 after buying an additional 8,091,570 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Chevron by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 43,613,011 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $6,620,187,000 after buying an additional 134,890 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Chevron by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 36,036,844 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $5,492,377,000 after buying an additional 961,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Chevron by 5.1% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 27,630,227 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $5,716,694,000 after acquiring an additional 1,334,976 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.42% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Chevron

In other news, Director John B. Hess sold 380,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.20, for a total transaction of $73,416,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 278,045 shares of the company's stock, valued at $53,718,294. This represents a 57.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.56% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on shares of Chevron in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $207.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank upped their price target on Chevron from $168.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Mizuho set a $224.00 price target on Chevron in a research report on Monday. BNP Paribas Exane raised Chevron from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $174.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $220.00 price objective on shares of Chevron in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Chevron currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $207.26.

Chevron Price Performance

NYSE:CVX opened at $193.19 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $181.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $185.33. Chevron Corporation has a 12 month low of $146.49 and a 12 month high of $214.71. The firm has a market cap of $384.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The oil and gas company reported $6.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.55 by $0.51. Chevron had a return on equity of 11.14% and a net margin of 9.57%.The business had revenue of $67.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.77 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 57.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Chevron Corporation will post 15.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chevron Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be issued a $1.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 19th. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Chevron's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.26%.

Key Headlines Impacting Chevron

Here are the key news stories impacting Chevron this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Strong Q2 earnings: Chevron reported adjusted earnings per share of $6.06, above the $5.55 consensus estimate, while revenue and other income reached $70.06 billion. Results were boosted by elevated oil prices and represented the company’s strongest performance in years. Analysts Raise Chevron Forecasts
• Positive Sentiment: Higher analyst targets: Barclays raised its price target to $216 from $213, while Sanford C. Bernstein increased its target to $209 from $204. Both firms retained neutral ratings, but the revisions signal improved earnings expectations. Analyst Price Target Updates
• Positive Sentiment: Operational and strategic developments: Chevron plans special employee bonuses following strong operational results, is expanding its North American base-oils distribution network through partnerships with HF Sinclair and Renkert Oil, and highlighted cost reductions, lower capital spending and power projects during its earnings call. Chevron Staff Bonus
• Neutral Sentiment: Geopolitical exposure: The Iran conflict has lifted crude prices and Chevron’s profits, but management and investors must now assess whether the gains are sustainable as negotiations could reduce supply-disruption fears.
• Negative Sentiment: Political pressure on profits and fuel prices: President Donald Trump criticized Chevron and ExxonMobil for making excessive profits and demanded lower gasoline prices. Potential government scrutiny, a Department of Justice probe and possible export restrictions could threaten future earnings or margins. Trump Demands Lower Gas Prices
• Negative Sentiment: Lower oil prices: Reports of U.S.-Iran talks triggered a crude selloff, weighing on energy shares and raising concerns that Chevron’s windfall earnings may fade if geopolitical risk premiums decline.
• Negative Sentiment: Berkshire stake reduction: Berkshire Hathaway reportedly cut its Chevron position by 35%, a notable negative signal for investors who track the company’s portfolio decisions.

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.

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