Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Trading 3.5% Higher – Should You Buy?

Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) was up 3.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $174.61 and last traded at $173.9590. 8,936,202 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 23% from the average daily volume of 11,636,326 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on CVX. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Chevron from $179.00 to $242.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. HSBC raised Chevron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $215.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, March 20th. Tudor Pickering raised shares of Chevron from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $225.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Chevron from $192.00 to $213.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Chevron from $210.00 to $235.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Chevron has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $205.71.

Chevron Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $346.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $183.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $180.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last posted 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. Chevron had a return on equity of 6.90% and a net margin of 5.79%.The company had revenue of $47.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $51.86 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.18 EPS. Chevron’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Chevron Corporation will post 15.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 19th were paid a $1.78 dividend. 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 4.1%. Chevron’s payout ratio is currently 123.40%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,718,294. This represents a 57.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Chevron

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CVX. Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Chevron during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Main Street Group LTD purchased a new position in Chevron in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. purchased a new position in Chevron in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Core Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Chevron during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Finally, Karpus Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Chevron during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. 72.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.