Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Trading 1.1% Higher – Should You Buy?

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) shares traded up 1.1% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $184.83 and last traded at $183.6860. Approximately 6,156,601 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 46% from the average session volume of 11,424,254 shares. The stock had previously closed at $181.60.

Chevron News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Chevron this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Chevron is expected to sign accords with Iraq to advance investments in major oil fields, including West Qurna 2 and Nassiriya, which could expand long-term production opportunities. Reuters article on Iraq oilfield MOUs
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Chevron is exploring a pipeline alternative to the Strait of Hormuz suggest a potential way to boost Iraqi export capacity and lower shipping disruption risk, which investors may view as strategically important. The Motley Fool article on Hormuz bypass pipeline
• Positive Sentiment: Chevron is being highlighted as a relatively attractive long-term energy stock versus TotalEnergies because of its premium assets, strong balance sheet, and steadier earnings outlook. Yahoo Finance article comparing CVX and TTE
• Neutral Sentiment: Some commentary says Chevron stock looks closer to fairly valued after a strong five-year run, which may limit upside for investors expecting a clear bargain. Yahoo Finance article on valuation
• Neutral Sentiment: Chevron also benefited from broader energy-sector gains, with the sector rising even as the wider market was mixed. Yahoo Finance sector update

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CVX has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $220.00 price objective on shares of Chevron in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. HSBC raised shares of Chevron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 20th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Chevron from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $174.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $216.00 target price on shares of Chevron in a report on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Chevron from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Chevron presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $206.83.

Chevron Stock Up 1.9%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.09 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market cap of $373.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.48, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $181.54 and a 200-day moving average of $182.44.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.41. The business had revenue of $47.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $51.86 billion. Chevron had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 6.90%. Chevron’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.18 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Chevron Corporation will post 14.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chevron Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $1.78 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Chevron’s payout ratio is 123.40%.

Insider Activity at Chevron

In other news, Director John B. Hess sold 380,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $193.20, for a total value of $73,416,000.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 278,045 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,718,294. This trade represents a 57.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Chevron in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Chevron during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. bought a new position in shares of Chevron during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Basso Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Chevron during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Karpus Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Chevron during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. 72.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.