PFG Advisors Lowers Position in ExxonMobil Corporation $XOM

Key Points

• PFG Advisors cut its stake in ExxonMobil by 26.4% in Q4, selling 11,718 shares and leaving 32,703 shares valued at $3.935 million.
• Several other institutional investors increased their Exxon positions and overall institutional ownership remains high at 61.80%, indicating continued buy-side interest despite the PFG reduction.
• Positive catalysts — the start of commercial exports from the Golden Pass LNG terminal, a $150M Longtail contract in Guyana, and analyst upgrades — have helped lift sentiment to a "Moderate Buy" consensus with a $161.55 target, and Exxon pays a $1.03 quarterly dividend (~2.7% yield).

PFG Advisors cut its stake in ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM - Free Report) by 26.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,703 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 11,718 shares during the period. PFG Advisors' holdings in ExxonMobil were worth $3,935,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System increased its stake in shares of ExxonMobil by 2.6% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 215,892 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $24,342,000 after purchasing an additional 5,573 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ExxonMobil by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 231,488 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $27,857,000 after purchasing an additional 14,233 shares in the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ExxonMobil by 5.6% during the third quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 166,547 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $18,778,000 after purchasing an additional 8,853 shares in the last quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of ExxonMobil by 78.3% during the third quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC now owns 13,180 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,486,000 after purchasing an additional 5,788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Krilogy Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of ExxonMobil by 46.6% during the third quarter. Krilogy Financial LLC now owns 35,160 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $3,997,000 after purchasing an additional 11,177 shares in the last quarter. 61.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

More ExxonMobil News

Here are the key news stories impacting ExxonMobil this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Golden Pass LNG begins exports — Exxon and QatarEnergy shipped the first LNG cargo from the Golden Pass export terminal in Texas, marking the start of commercial exports from a ~18.1 mtpa, three‑train facility and supporting long‑term LNG revenue growth and market share in U.S. gas exports. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Guyana Longtail work advances — ExxonMobil awarded Saipem a $150M contract to advance preliminary detailed engineering and procurement for the Longtail development in Guyana, indicating continued capex deployment and near‑term production growth from a high‑return basin. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and price‑target lift — Zacks upgraded XOM to a "strong‑buy" and Scotiabank raised its price target to $163 (sector outperform), improving sentiment and potentially attracting more buy‑side interest. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Plastics pricing tailwind — Exxon is among firms hiking plastics prices amid supply shocks tied to geopolitical tensions; higher downstream pricing can boost margins and cash flow in the chemicals business. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Potential new upstream contracts in Gabon — Gabon expects to sign production‑sharing contracts with BP and Exxon within months, signaling more exploration/development upside in Africa if deals close. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Possible Hong Kong retail sale — Reports say Exxon is considering selling its Hong Kong gas‑station network for roughly $500–$600M; proceeds would be modest versus company scale but could reflect portfolio optimization. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Featured in investor idea pieces — XOM appears in "high‑flying" and income‑focused writeups and options income strategies; these can boost retail interest but are not fundamental catalysts. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

XOM has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of ExxonMobil from $175.00 to $172.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Zacks Research raised shares of ExxonMobil from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of ExxonMobil from $150.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of ExxonMobil from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of ExxonMobil from $135.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, ExxonMobil currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $161.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other ExxonMobil news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 1,080 shares of ExxonMobil stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.50, for a total value of $167,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 17,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,662,782. The trade was a 5.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,460 shares of company stock valued at $1,687,854. Insiders own 0.03% of the company's stock.

ExxonMobil Trading Up 0.7%

NYSE:XOM opened at $150.61 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. ExxonMobil Corporation has a 12 month low of $101.18 and a 12 month high of $176.41. The company has a market cap of $626.01 billion, a PE ratio of 22.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $133.61.

ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.08. ExxonMobil had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The business had revenue of $80.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that ExxonMobil Corporation will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current year.

ExxonMobil Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 12th were given a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 12th. ExxonMobil's payout ratio is 61.58%.

ExxonMobil Company Profile

ExxonMobil Corporation NYSE: XOM is an integrated oil and gas company engaged in the exploration, production, refining, distribution and marketing of petroleum products and the manufacture and sale of petrochemicals. Its operations span the full energy value chain, including upstream exploration and development of crude oil and natural gas; midstream transportation and storage; and downstream refining, product distribution and retail. The company also produces a broad range of chemical products for industrial and consumer applications.

ExxonMobil markets fuels and lubricants under well-known brands such as Exxon, Mobil and Esso, and its Mobil 1 motor oil is a prominent consumer product.

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