Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Shares Down 0.6% – Time to Sell?

Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX) was down 0.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $156.66 and last traded at $157.29. Approximately 1,568,591 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 7,552,490 shares. The stock had previously closed at $158.24.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Chevron from $171.00 to $188.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Chevron from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup raised Chevron from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. UBS Group raised their target price on Chevron from $194.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, DZ Bank raised Chevron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.27.

Chevron Trading Down 0.3 %

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $153.93 and a 200 day moving average of $151.14. The firm has a market cap of $279.66 billion, a PE ratio of 17.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The oil and gas company reported $2.51 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.04. Chevron had a return on equity of 13.15% and a net margin of 8.44%. The firm had revenue of $50.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.86 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.05 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Chevron Co. will post 10.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were given a $1.63 dividend. This represents a $6.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Michael K. Wirth sold 164,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $160.13, for a total transaction of $26,357,398.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 4,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $685,356.40. The trade was a 97.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chevron

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Marietta Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Chevron by 10.9% during the 3rd quarter. Marietta Wealth Management LLC now owns 40,484 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,962,000 after acquiring an additional 3,965 shares during the period. Leo Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Chevron by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Leo Wealth LLC now owns 8,246 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,214,000 after buying an additional 1,354 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Chevron by 11.5% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,108,760 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,581,137,000 after acquiring an additional 3,203,899 shares in the last quarter. RPG Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Chevron by 3.4% in the third quarter. RPG Investment Advisory LLC now owns 121,167 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $17,844,000 after acquiring an additional 3,933 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Chevron by 0.6% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 159,105,244 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $23,431,429,000 after acquiring an additional 874,962 shares in the last quarter. 72.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Chevron

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification of liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas; and carbon capture and storage, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant.