Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Makes New Investment in Chevron Corporation $CVX

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,890,968 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock, valued at approximately $810,727,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CVX. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Chevron by 9.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 152,605,988 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $23,698,184,000 after acquiring an additional 12,789,399 shares during the last quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc boosted its position in shares of Chevron by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Berkshire Hathaway Inc now owns 130,156,362 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $19,837,131,000 after acquiring an additional 8,091,570 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Chevron by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 43,613,011 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,620,187,000 after acquiring an additional 134,890 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Chevron by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 36,036,844 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,492,377,000 after purchasing an additional 961,341 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Chevron by 5.1% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 27,630,227 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $5,716,694,000 after purchasing an additional 1,334,976 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.42% of the company’s stock.

Chevron News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Chevron this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major Angola discovery expands Chevron’s resource base. Chevron’s 105-4X exploration well in offshore Angola’s Block 0 encountered a hydrocarbon column exceeding 600 meters (about 2,000 feet), including more than 90 meters of net pay in the primary Pinda reservoir. The size of the find strengthens the company’s long-term production outlook and supports its strategic exploration program in Sub-Saharan Africa. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Potential tie-in could reduce development costs. The discovery is located near existing Block 0 infrastructure, creating the possibility of a relatively efficient tie-back and potentially accelerating development while limiting capital requirements. However, commerciality, appraisal work and a development timeline have not yet been established. Chevron Stock Rises After Major Angola Discovery
• Positive Sentiment: Higher oil prices provide additional sector support. Reports that Brent crude was approaching $89 a barrel amid continued disruption and uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz are supportive of Chevron’s upstream revenue and cash-flow prospects, although the geopolitical situation also raises market and operating risks. Brent Crude Nears $89
• Neutral Sentiment: Income appeal remains part of the investment case. Chevron continues to be highlighted by analysts as a dividend-paying energy major with potential upside, but the dividend coverage and valuation were not materially changed by these reports. Dividend Stocks Article

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Chevron from $168.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 22nd. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Chevron in a research note on Tuesday, June 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Chevron from $204.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays cut their target price on Chevron from $216.00 to $208.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Chevron from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Chevron currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $207.13.

Chevron Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE CVX opened at $202.75 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $400.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.44, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.25. Chevron Corporation has a one year low of $146.49 and a one year high of $214.71. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $183.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $187.25.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The oil and gas company reported $6.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.55 by $0.51. Chevron had a net margin of 9.57% and a return on equity of 11.09%. The company had revenue of $67.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.72 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.77 earnings per share. Chevron’s revenue for the quarter was up 57.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Chevron Corporation will post 15.86 EPS for the current year.

Chevron Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 19th will be given a dividend of $1.78 per share. This represents a $7.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 19th. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio is 68.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Chevron news, CEO Michael K. Wirth sold 5,547 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $187.00, for a total transaction of $1,037,289.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 26,308 shares in the company, valued at $4,919,596. The trade was a 17.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John B. Hess sold 100,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $194.26, for a total value of $19,426,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 178,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $34,587,021.70. The trade was a 35.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,196,212 shares of company stock valued at $231,819,366. 0.56% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Chevron 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.