Imperial Oil (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) Downgraded by JPMorgan Chase & Co. to “Underweight”

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Imperial Oil (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) (TSE:IMO) from a neutral rating to an underweight rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. StockNews.com downgraded Imperial Oil from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 28th. Scotiabank reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $110.00 target price on shares of Imperial Oil in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $109.00.

Imperial Oil Trading Down 1.2 %

NYSEAMERICAN IMO opened at $61.73 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $31.64 billion, a PE ratio of 9.20 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a current ratio of 1.44. Imperial Oil has a 52-week low of $54.58 and a 52-week high of $80.17.

Imperial Oil Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be paid a $0.4304 dividend. This represents a $1.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 3rd. Imperial Oil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.38%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Imperial Oil

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of IMO. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Imperial Oil by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 36,933,627 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $2,598,604,000 after purchasing an additional 1,331,235 shares during the last quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp increased its stake in Imperial Oil by 10,896.4% during the 2nd quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 867,174 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $59,135,000 after purchasing an additional 859,288 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Imperial Oil in the second quarter worth $40,729,000. TD Asset Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of Imperial Oil by 12.2% during the second quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 3,796,660 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $258,817,000 after buying an additional 412,600 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Imperial Oil by 8.4% during the third quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 4,420,002 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $311,175,000 after buying an additional 341,689 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.