Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 14,323 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 770,750 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,323 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $82,910,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in XOM. Vertex Planning Partners LLC raised its stake in Exxon Mobil by 3.1% during the third quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 2,778 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $326,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. increased its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. now owns 9,451 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Exxon Mobil by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 13,378 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,568,000 after purchasing an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.6% in the third quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 14,537 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,704,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Oak Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 16,207 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,743,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $231,000.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,087 shares in the company, valued at $1,989,570. This trade represents a 10.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Scotiabank reduced their price target on Exxon Mobil from $145.00 to $140.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. HSBC reduced their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $115.00 price target on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

Exxon Mobil stock opened at $108.17 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $108.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $475.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.80, a PEG ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.31. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 52-week low of $100.60 and a 52-week high of $126.34.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by ($0.10). Exxon Mobil had a return on equity of 12.92% and a net margin of 9.63%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.48 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.99 per share. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.51%.

About Exxon Mobil

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.