Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI Trims Stake in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI decreased its position in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 29.5% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,248,043 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 523,235 shares during the period. Exxon Mobil accounts for about 1.2% of Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $143,675,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of XOM. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. purchased a new position in Exxon Mobil during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Exxon Mobil in the 2nd quarter worth about $35,000. Anfield Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Exxon Mobil by 360.0% during the 2nd quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 322 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 918.9% in the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 377 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. 61.80% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:XOM opened at $117.07 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 1.01. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 12 month low of $95.77 and a 12 month high of $123.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $461.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.35, a P/E/G ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.90. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $115.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.59.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last posted its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The oil and gas company reported $2.14 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.04 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $93.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $90.09 billion. Exxon Mobil had a return on equity of 16.07% and a net margin of 9.73%. The business’s revenue was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 8.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. Exxon Mobil’s payout ratio is currently 46.57%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Exxon Mobil to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $145.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein cut their target price on Exxon Mobil from $139.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $157.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Exxon Mobil presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $135.82.

Exxon Mobil Profile

Exxon Mobil Corporation engages in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas in the United States and internationally. It operates through Upstream, Energy Products, Chemical Products, and Specialty Products segments. The Upstream segment explores for and produces crude oil and natural gas.