AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 667,759 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

AQR Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 26.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,901,954 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 667,759 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $203,319,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of XOM. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 93,299,598 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $10,023,875,000 after purchasing an additional 1,104,617 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,936,737,000. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 46,017,358 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,950,087,000 after purchasing an additional 2,998,892 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 43,983,110 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,731,263,000 after purchasing an additional 5,538,694 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Exxon Mobil by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 35,662,602 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,836,226,000 after acquiring an additional 4,140,046 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Exxon Mobil Stock Performance

Exxon Mobil stock opened at $108.64 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $112.02. 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 stock has a market cap of $469.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.86, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.61. Exxon Mobil Co. has a fifty-two week low of $97.80 and a fifty-two week high of $126.34.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last announced its quarterly 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. As a group, analysts expect that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were paid a dividend of $0.99 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $3.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.65%. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio is 50.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on XOM shares. HSBC lowered their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Argus raised shares of Exxon Mobil to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $115.00 target price on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $131.00 to $129.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Exxon Mobil has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of Exxon Mobil 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,989,570. The trade was a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.03% of the company’s stock.

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.