Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Trading 1.3% Higher – What’s Next?

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)’s stock price was up 1.3% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $187.55 and last traded at $186.4660. Approximately 11,899,982 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 0% from the average daily volume of 11,937,146 shares. The stock had previously closed at $184.16.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CVX has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $212.00 price objective on shares of Chevron in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Melius Research raised Chevron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $205.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Bank of America decreased their price target on Chevron from $183.00 to $180.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Chevron from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $176.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Chevron from $196.00 to $204.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Chevron has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $176.36.

Chevron Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $372.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $168.75 and a 200-day simple moving average of $159.34.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $1.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.08. Chevron had a net margin of 6.51% and a return on equity of 7.89%. The business had revenue of $45.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $48.18 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Chevron Corporation will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be given a dividend of $1.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 17th. This is a positive change from Chevron’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.71. This represents a $7.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio is 106.91%.

Insider Transactions at Chevron

In other Chevron news, insider Andrew Benjamin Walz sold 1,463 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.83, for a total transaction of $268,943.29. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider R. Hewitt Pate sold 41,134 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.40, for a total value of $7,256,037.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 4,169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $735,411.60. This trade represents a 90.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 534,898 shares of company stock valued at $89,543,711 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chevron

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. D.B. Root & Company LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Chevron by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. D.B. Root & Company LLC now owns 5,552 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $846,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management lifted its stake in Chevron by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Fox Hill Wealth Management now owns 3,443 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chevron by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 930 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $142,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. MMA Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Chevron by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. MMA Asset Management LLC now owns 1,820 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $277,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EWA LLC increased its holdings in shares of Chevron by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,182 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $333,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.42% of the company’s stock.

About Chevron

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) is an American multinational energy company engaged in virtually all aspects of the oil and gas industry. As an integrated energy firm, Chevron’s core activities include upstream oil and natural gas exploration and production, midstream transportation and storage, downstream refining and marketing of fuels and lubricants, and petrochemical manufacturing through joint ventures and subsidiaries. The company markets fuels under brands such as Chevron, Texaco and Caltex and supplies a range of products and services to retail customers, industrial users and commercial fleets worldwide.

Chevron traces its corporate lineage to the early petroleum companies that eventually became Standard Oil of California and has evolved through significant mergers and restructurings, including the acquisitions of Gulf Oil and Texaco.