Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of Exxon Mobil Call Options (NYSE:XOM)

Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock investors bought 91,933 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 12% compared to the typical volume of 82,264 call options.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

Shares of Exxon Mobil stock opened at $121.49 on Thursday. Exxon Mobil has a twelve month low of $95.77 and a twelve month high of $123.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $479.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.89, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.90. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $116.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $115.85.

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

Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.57%.

Institutional Trading of Exxon Mobil

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in XOM. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. J. W. Coons Advisors LLC now owns 39,609 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,960,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Exxon Mobil by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 93,495 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $9,348,000 after purchasing an additional 593 shares in the last quarter. Prudent Man Advisors LLC bought a new position in Exxon Mobil during the 4th quarter valued at $623,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 23.4% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 28,191 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,819,000 after purchasing an additional 5,349 shares during the period. Finally, Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. now owns 52,604 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $5,259,000 after buying an additional 1,376 shares in the last quarter. 61.80% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped 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. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $146.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $135.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $147.00 to $142.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $157.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.75.

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.