Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Shares Up 1.2% – Should You Buy?

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX)’s share price traded up 1.2% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $190.35 and last traded at $189.7130. Approximately 7,685,765 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 32% from the average daily volume of 11,365,183 shares. The stock had previously closed at $187.38.

Chevron News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Chevron this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street expects Chevron’s upcoming second-quarter report to show a triple-digit increase in net income, which could reinforce confidence in the company’s near-term earnings power. Earnings Preview: What To Expect From Chevron’s Report
• Positive Sentiment: Oil prices are moving higher amid geopolitical uncertainty, which is typically favorable for Chevron’s production and cash flow outlook. Update: US Equity Futures Drop Pre-Bell as Oil Prices Jump Amid Lack of Progress in US-Iran Talks
• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen raised Chevron’s price target to $200 from $197, signaling modestly improved valuation expectations even though the firm kept a hold rating.
• Positive Sentiment: Chevron continues to draw attention as a high-yield Dividend Aristocrat, supporting investor interest in the stock’s income profile. Chevron Leads 3 Dividend Aristocrats Paying Up to 4% and Beating the S&P 500
• Neutral Sentiment: Chevron shut production at its Petronius platform in the U.S. Gulf ahead of a tropical storm, a precautionary move that may limit near-term output but is not necessarily a lasting operational issue. Chevron shuts US Gulf platform in preparation for developing tropical storm

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CVX has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their target price on Chevron from $197.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Chevron from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Wolfe Research upgraded Chevron from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Chevron from $204.00 to $222.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $220.00 target price on shares of Chevron in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Chevron presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $206.62.

Chevron Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $383.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $181.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $183.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.09 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The oil and gas company reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $47.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $51.86 billion. Chevron had a net margin of 5.79% and a return on equity of 6.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.18 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Chevron Corporation will post 14.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Chevron Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were given a $1.78 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 19th. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.7%. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 123.40%.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Trading of Chevron

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. United Bank lifted its holdings in Chevron by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 11,079 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $1,586,000 after buying an additional 796 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its holdings in Chevron by 9.0% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 50,839 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $7,280,000 after acquiring an additional 4,214 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas raised its holdings in Chevron by 76.4% during the 2nd quarter. BNP Paribas now owns 441 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares during the last quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Chevron by 678.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,363 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $195,000 after purchasing an additional 1,188 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its stake in shares of Chevron by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 16,052 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $2,299,000 after purchasing an additional 553 shares during the last quarter. 72.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Chevron Company Profile

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.