Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) (TSE:IMO) has received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the six research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $99.50.

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on IMO shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Imperial Oil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Imperial Oil in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Imperial Oil in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $108.00 price target on the stock.

Imperial Oil Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSEAMERICAN:IMO opened at $76.98 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a current ratio of 1.40 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Imperial Oil has a 12-month low of $52.97 and a 12-month high of $80.17. The firm has a market cap of $40.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 1.44.

Imperial Oil (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) (TSE:IMO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The energy company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.43 by $0.11. Imperial Oil had a return on equity of 22.73% and a net margin of 10.05%. The firm had revenue of $9.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.50 billion. Research analysts predict that Imperial Oil will post 6.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Imperial Oil Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 4th were given a dividend of $0.4336 per share. This represents a $1.73 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 4th. Imperial Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.21%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Imperial Oil

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its holdings in Imperial Oil by 5.1% during the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 3,266 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Imperial Oil by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,308 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $237,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Imperial Oil by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,319 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. OLD National Bancorp IN lifted its position in Imperial Oil by 5.6% during the second quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 3,831 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $261,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Imperial Oil by 84.0% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 493 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 20.74% of the company’s stock.

About Imperial Oil

Imperial Oil Limited engages in exploration, production, and sale of crude oil and natural gas in Canada. The company operates through three segments: Upstream, Downstream and Chemical segments. The Upstream segment explores and produces crude oil, natural gas, synthetic crude oil, and bitumen. The Downstream segment transports and refines crude oil, blends refined products, and distributes and markets of refined products.