Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. Sells 16,657 Shares of ExxonMobil Corporation $XOM

Key Points

• Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. cut its ExxonMobil stake by 15.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 16,657 shares and leaving it with 88,878 shares valued at about $10.7 million.
• ExxonMobil reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, posting $1.16 per share versus estimates of $0.98 and revenue of $83.16 billion, while revenue also rose 2.4% year over year.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.03 per share, payable June 10, which annualizes to $4.12 and yields about 2.7%.

Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc. lessened its stake in ExxonMobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM - Free Report) by 15.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 88,878 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after selling 16,657 shares during the quarter. Schwartz Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in ExxonMobil were worth $10,696,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of ExxonMobil in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new position in ExxonMobil in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Nvest Wealth Strategies Inc. purchased a new position in ExxonMobil in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. DecisionPoint Financial LLC grew its stake in ExxonMobil by 968.0% in the 4th quarter. DecisionPoint Financial LLC now owns 267 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westfuller Advisors LLC purchased a new position in ExxonMobil in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company's stock.

Key ExxonMobil News

Here are the key news stories impacting ExxonMobil this week:

• Positive Sentiment: ExxonMobil is being highlighted as a blue-chip dividend stock, with UBS recently raising its price target and investors continuing to favor large integrated oil companies for income and stability.
• Positive Sentiment: Rising crude prices and fuel-market disruption tied to Middle East tensions could support ExxonMobil’s upstream earnings, while its large Beaumont refinery may benefit from cheaper domestic crude and wider refining margins.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent commentary also points to ExxonMobil’s strong one-year rally and its scale in the Dow and global energy markets as evidence of durable investor appeal.
• Neutral Sentiment: Some investors are questioning whether ExxonMobil is still a value buy after its strong run, noting that the stock has pulled back modestly from recent highs and may already reflect much of the good news.
• Neutral Sentiment: The company’s upcoming ex-dividend date may draw income investors, but it is more of a routine calendar event than a major fundamental catalyst.
• Negative Sentiment: Proxy adviser ISS recommended shareholders vote against ExxonMobil’s plan to move its registration to Texas, citing concerns that the change could make it harder for shareholders to hold directors and officers accountable.

Insider Buying and Selling at ExxonMobil

In other ExxonMobil news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 1,080 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.50, for a total value of $167,940.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 17,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,662,782. This trade represents a 5.93% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on XOM shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of ExxonMobil in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of ExxonMobil from $135.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of ExxonMobil from $183.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of ExxonMobil from $145.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of ExxonMobil from an "outperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $163.95.

ExxonMobil Stock Up 0.6%

XOM opened at $150.59 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $154.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $624.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.77. ExxonMobil Corporation has a one year low of $101.18 and a one year high of $176.41.

ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.98 by $0.18. ExxonMobil had a net margin of 7.57% and a return on equity of 10.24%. The firm had revenue of $83.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $81.13 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.76 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that ExxonMobil Corporation will post 11.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ExxonMobil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $1.03 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. ExxonMobil's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.48%.

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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