Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Trading 1.4% Higher – Still a Buy?

Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX)’s stock price traded up 1.4% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $157.85 and last traded at $157.38. 1,446,213 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 7,117,575 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.14.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup upgraded Chevron from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $145.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James decreased their price target on shares of Chevron from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Chevron in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of Chevron from $195.00 to $194.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price target on shares of Chevron from $184.00 to $173.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.13.

Chevron Stock Up 1.2 %

The company has a market cap of $279.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.32, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $153.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $151.44. 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 announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by ($0.36). Chevron had a return on equity of 11.44% and a net margin of 8.71%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.45 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Chevron Co. will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Chevron’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.31%. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Chevron news, VP Jeff B. Gustavson sold 9,325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $152.50, for a total value of $1,422,062.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $161,192.50. This trade represents a 89.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chevron

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Chevron in the 4th quarter valued at $3,017,750,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Chevron during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,036,302,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Chevron by 949.6% in the third quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,819,963 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $562,566,000 after buying an additional 3,456,008 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in 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 worth $4,581,137,000 after buying an additional 3,203,899 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Chevron by 17.3% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 16,496,687 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,389,380,000 after acquiring an additional 2,432,756 shares during the period. 72.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Chevron Company Profile

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.