Willis Investment Counsel Purchases 1,894 Shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM)

Willis Investment Counsel grew its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil Co. (NYSE:XOM) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 209,292 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 1,894 shares during the quarter. Exxon Mobil accounts for about 1.5% of Willis Investment Counsel’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in Exxon Mobil were worth $22,514,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vertex Planning Partners LLC boosted its stake in Exxon Mobil by 3.1% in the third quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 2,778 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $326,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. boosted its position in shares of Exxon Mobil by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. now owns 9,451 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,108,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC grew its stake in Exxon Mobil by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Latitude Advisors LLC now owns 13,378 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,568,000 after buying an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC increased its position in Exxon Mobil by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 14,537 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,704,000 after buying an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Oak Capital LLC raised its stake in Exxon Mobil by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 16,207 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,743,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 61.80% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 2,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 18,087 shares in the company, valued at $1,989,570. This trade represents a 10.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Exxon Mobil Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of XOM opened at $109.81 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14. The firm has a market cap of $482.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.01, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $109.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.08. Exxon Mobil Co. has a 12 month low of $100.42 and a 12 month high of $126.34.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the business posted $2.48 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Exxon Mobil Co. will post 7.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 12th will be paid a $0.99 dividend. This represents a $3.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, February 12th. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.51%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

XOM has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. HSBC dropped their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Monday. BNP Paribas downgraded Exxon Mobil from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company. in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $139.00 to $140.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $117.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $129.25.

Exxon Mobil 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.