Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) (TSE:IMO) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,560,000 shares, a decrease of 8.1% from the January 15th total of 15,850,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 527,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 27.6 days. Approximately 8.6% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Creative Planning boosted its position in shares of Imperial Oil by 13.1% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 43,329 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $3,053,000 after purchasing an additional 5,024 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Imperial Oil by 9.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 9,756 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $666,000 after buying an additional 856 shares during the last quarter. Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in Imperial Oil in the third quarter worth about $101,000. U S Global Investors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Imperial Oil during the third quarter worth about $423,000. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Imperial Oil by 5.0% during the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,753 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $265,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 20.74% of the company’s stock.

Imperial Oil Stock Performance

NYSEAMERICAN:IMO traded up $1.84 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $71.09. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 352,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 562,234. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company has a market capitalization of $36.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79 and a beta of 1.44. Imperial Oil has a 12 month low of $58.60 and a 12 month high of $80.17.

Imperial Oil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 5th will be issued a $0.4972 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 5th. This is an increase from Imperial Oil’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.43. This represents a $1.99 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.80%. Imperial Oil’s payout ratio is currently 25.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research cut Imperial Oil from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Imperial Oil from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $109.00.

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.