Franklin Resources Inc. Purchases 1,797,171 Shares of Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX)

Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX - Free Report) by 13.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,622,388 shares of the oil and gas company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,797,171 shares during the period. Chevron comprises 1.1% of Franklin Resources Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.83% of Chevron worth $2,330,235,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CVX. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Chevron during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,902,007,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Chevron by 73,888.2% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,602,805 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $686,554,000 after purchasing an additional 4,596,584 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Chevron by 15,548.2% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,202,411 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $4,776,720,000 after purchasing an additional 3,181,946 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in Chevron by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 34,166,899 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $5,761,223,000 after purchasing an additional 2,244,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Chevron in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $348,789,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.42% of the company's stock.

Chevron Stock Down 0.9 %

NYSE:CVX traded down $1.43 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $161.24. The company had a trading volume of 4,912,279 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,247,853. The firm has a market cap of $297.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.11. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $159.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $152.16. Chevron Co. has a twelve month low of $139.62 and a twelve month high of $171.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The oil and gas company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $48.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $48.42 billion. Chevron had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 14.40%. The business's revenue was down 4.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.55 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Chevron Co. will post 13.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be issued a dividend of $1.63 per share. This represents a $6.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 16th. Chevron's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.98%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. HSBC increased their price objective on shares of Chevron from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Chevron in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $203.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Chevron from $198.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Chevron from $200.00 to $205.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 13th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Chevron from $185.00 to $197.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $186.10.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Enrique Hernandez, Jr. sold 2,549 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.00, for a total transaction of $410,389.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 7,647 shares in the company, valued at $1,231,167. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Chevron news, Director Enrique Hernandez, Jr. sold 5,098 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.50, for a total value of $833,523.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 2,549 shares in the company, valued at approximately $416,761.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Enrique Hernandez, Jr. sold 2,549 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.00, for a total transaction of $410,389.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 7,647 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,231,167. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,796 shares of company stock worth $2,575,361 over the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Chevron Company Profile

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification of liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas; and carbon capture and storage, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant.

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