Braun Stacey Associates Inc. Cuts Holdings in Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Braun Stacey Associates Inc. lessened its position in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 6.1% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 387,167 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 25,208 shares during the quarter. Exxon Mobil comprises approximately 1.6% of Braun Stacey Associates Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Braun Stacey Associates Inc.’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $41,648,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. FMR LLC boosted its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 151,863,649 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,801,457,000 after purchasing an additional 395,218 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 92,194,981 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,777,735,000 after buying an additional 1,622,064 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 16.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 31,522,556 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,936,929,000 after buying an additional 4,415,012 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,160,117 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,652,589,000 after acquiring an additional 146,374 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 29,197,557 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,422,538,000 after acquiring an additional 949,875 shares during the period. 61.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total transaction of $231,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,087 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,989,570. This represents a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.03% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Exxon Mobil Trading Up 1.7 %

Exxon Mobil stock opened at $112.12 on Friday. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 1 year low of $102.88 and a 1 year high of $126.34. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $108.60 and its 200-day moving average is $114.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.31. The company has a market cap of $492.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.30, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.89.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 earnings per share (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 in the prior year, the firm posted $2.48 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. Exxon Mobil’s payout ratio is currently 50.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on XOM. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $149.00 to $147.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research raised their target price on Exxon Mobil from $137.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Exxon Mobil from $139.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Exxon Mobil presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil Company Profile

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.