ExxonMobil Corporation $XOM Stake Lowered by Aberdeen Group plc

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group cut its ExxonMobil stake by 27.9% in the third quarter, selling 526,239 shares and ending the period with 1,359,956 shares valued at about $221.3 million.
• Analyst opinion is mixed: MarketBeat reports a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $170.79.
• ExxonMobil beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, and raised its quarterly dividend from $1.03 to $1.07 per share.

Aberdeen Group plc lowered its holdings in ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM - Free Report) by 27.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,359,956 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 526,239 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc's holdings in ExxonMobil were worth $221,333,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of XOM. ProVise Management Group LLC bought a new position in ExxonMobil during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,278,000. Stonebridge Financial Planning Group LLC raised its position in shares of ExxonMobil by 9.5% during the 3rd quarter. Stonebridge Financial Planning Group LLC now owns 6,432 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,047,000 after acquiring an additional 559 shares in the last quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC lifted its holdings in ExxonMobil by 1.6% in the third quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC now owns 8,363 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,361,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. PFC Capital Group Inc. grew its position in shares of ExxonMobil by 19.1% during the third quarter. PFC Capital Group Inc. now owns 5,872 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $956,000 after acquiring an additional 942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evolution Advisers Inc. bought a new position in ExxonMobil in the 3rd quarter worth about $925,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.80% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on XOM shares. DZ Bank downgraded ExxonMobil from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $170.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of ExxonMobil from $160.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on shares of ExxonMobil from $193.00 to $186.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of ExxonMobil from $158.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, September 3rd. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on shares of ExxonMobil from $200.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $170.79.

ExxonMobil News Roundup

Investors following XOM have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: Higher oil prices are supporting earnings. Reports cite crude prices above $85—and Brent near $96—as a boost to ExxonMobil’s upstream business. Stronger refining margins have also contributed to earnings, though oil prices can be volatile. Article: ExxonMobil investment returns
• Positive Sentiment: ExxonMobil approved the $12.5 billion Longtail development offshore Guyana. The project is expected to add future production capacity, supporting longer-term growth, although production is not expected until 2030. Article: ExxonMobil Advances Next Phase of Guyana Development with Longtail
• Negative Sentiment: Bernstein lowered its price target to $186 from $193 and warned that oil stocks may struggle to appreciate, while keeping an Outperform rating. Article: Analyst trims oil-stock price targets

ExxonMobil Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:XOM opened at $170.56 on Friday. ExxonMobil Corporation has a 52 week low of $114.19 and a 52 week high of $188.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $695.77 billion, a PE ratio of 17.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $169.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.22.

ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The oil and gas company reported $4.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.12 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $110.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $104.89 billion. ExxonMobil had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 10.24%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that ExxonMobil Corporation will post 13.34 earnings per share for the current year.

ExxonMobil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a $1.07 dividend. This represents a $4.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. This is an increase from ExxonMobil's previous quarterly dividend of $1.03. ExxonMobil's payout ratio is currently 42.34%.

ExxonMobil Profile

ExxonMobil is an integrated energy and chemical company with operations spanning the oil and natural gas value chain. Its businesses explore for and produce crude oil and natural gas, refine and market fuels, and manufacture chemicals and other specialty products. The company's products include gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, lubricants, petrochemical feedstocks and materials used in a wide range of consumer and industrial applications. ExxonMobil also pursues lower-emission solutions, including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen and lower-emission fuels.

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