Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Analyst Upgrade

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday after Morgan Stanley raised their price target on the stock from $134.00 to $172.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Exxon Mobil traded as high as $172.47 and last traded at $176.1240, with a volume of 684793 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $170.99.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on XOM. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $140.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $118.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of Exxon Mobil from $135.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Exxon Mobil from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Exxon Mobil in a report on Monday, December 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Exxon Mobil presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $151.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 1,080 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.50, for a total value of $167,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 17,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,662,782. This represents a 5.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 11,460 shares of company stock valued at $1,687,854. 0.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Exxon Mobil News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Exxon Mobil this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oil-price driven rally: coverage notes that conflict in the Middle East has driven a sharp jump in oil and gas prices, helping lift Exxon and peers as beneficiaries of tighter supply and higher margins. Why ExxonMobil, Transocean, SLB, and Other Oil Stocks Surged This Week
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade: a fresh analyst upgrade is cited as driving intraday strength (reported ~3.5% higher in one note), which can spark momentum buying and draw short-term attention. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Trading 3.5% Higher on Analyst Upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish technical setup: market coverage points to a favorable chart pattern combining today’s oil rally with company-specific momentum, supporting further upside while momentum lasts. Exxon stock jumps as today’s oil rally meets a bullish chart
• Positive Sentiment: Buy-side commentary: retail/investor pieces are naming Exxon as a top oil pick given the supply shock — such recommendations can sustain buying interest in majors. The Best Oil Stock to Buy as Iran Tensions Rewrite the Global Energy Map
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector ETF flows/context: energy ETFs (e.g., VDE) are up strongly year-to-date as crude has moved above $90, underscoring broad sector strength that helps large-cap Exxon even if gains are not company-specific. This Vanguard ETF Is up 33% YTD and Still Has Massive Upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Commodity ripple effects: analyst notes on fertilizer and commodity chains highlight that higher oil supports Exxon’s margins, but also flag cross-commodity impacts that can be mixed for different parts of the economy. Oil and Fertilizer Prices May Soon Have Ripple Effects on These 3 Commodities Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Retail/AI picks coverage: a Finbold piece reporting ChatGPT stock picks highlights energy names as attractive amid volatility — may modestly influence retail flows but is not a primary driver. ChatGPT picks 3 best stocks to buy in April
• Negative Sentiment: Geopolitical uncertainty risk: analysts warn that uncertainty over how the Iran/Middle East conflict evolves — and political unpredictability around policy responses — could quickly reverse risk-on moves and increase market volatility. The problem for investors: We don’t know how Trump wants the Iran war to end

Institutional Trading of Exxon Mobil

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. McAlvany Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Exxon Mobil during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,126,000. J. Derek Lewis & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $462,000. Purpose Unlimited Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter worth $1,727,000. Cornerstone Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Exxon Mobil in the fourth quarter worth $3,371,000. Finally, Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Exxon Mobil by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 1,923,940 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $231,527,000 after buying an additional 43,460 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

Exxon Mobil Stock Up 2.0%

The business’s 50 day moving average is $149.30 and its 200-day moving average is $128.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $727.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 0.35.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.08. Exxon Mobil had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The firm had revenue of $80.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $77.98 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Exxon Mobil Corporation will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 12th were given a dividend of $1.03 per share. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 12th. Exxon Mobil’s payout ratio is currently 61.58%.

Exxon Mobil Company Profile

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) is an integrated oil and gas company engaged in the exploration, production, refining, distribution and marketing of petroleum products and the manufacture and sale of petrochemicals. Its operations span the full energy value chain, including upstream exploration and development of crude oil and natural gas; midstream transportation and storage; and downstream refining, product distribution and retail. The company also produces a broad range of chemical products for industrial and consumer applications.

ExxonMobil markets fuels and lubricants under well-known brands such as Exxon, Mobil and Esso, and its Mobil 1 motor oil is a prominent consumer product.