Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Trading Down 5.2% – Here’s Why

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) dropped 5.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $159.53 and last traded at $160.8920. Approximately 37,749,533 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 66% from the average daily volume of 22,736,607 shares. The stock had previously closed at $169.66.

More Exxon Mobil News

Here are the key news stories impacting Exxon Mobil this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Golden Pass LNG reaches first production (adds export capacity and revenue optionality for Exxon’s LNG business). ExxonMobil-QatarEnergy JV Starts LNG Output at Texas Facility
• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals remain strong: a history of earnings beats, advantaged upstream asset plans (5.5 MMboed by 2030) and targets for profit/volume growth support longer‑term cash flow and shareholder returns. Can Exxon (XOM) Keep the Earnings Surprise Streak Alive? Here’s How XOM’s Advantaged Upstream Assets Act as Its Growth Engine
• Positive Sentiment: Labor risk reduced after union workers ratified a new four‑year contract at Exxon’s Baton Rouge complex, supporting refining operations stability. Union workers ratify contract at Exxon Louisiana complex, sources say
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and high recent price targets have helped push the stock into leadership recently, but that momentum is vulnerable to macro/price moves in oil. Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) Reaches New 1-Year High After Analyst Upgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Easing U.S.–Iran tensions and renewed ceasefire optimism removed the near‑term geopolitical risk premium, sending crude down and triggering sector-wide profit taking — the primary driver of today’s decline. Exxon Mobil and Chevron Fall 5%: What Iran’s President Just Did to U.S. Oil Stocks Exxon Mobil slides as crude prices retreat on renewed Iran ceasefire optimism
• Negative Sentiment: Broader selling pressure: sector rotation into risk‑on assets and profit-taking after a volatile rally magnify declines when oil softens. ExxonMobil stock slips as oil falls, but rally may not be over yet
• Negative Sentiment: Corporate/GO‑to‑market risks: reporting on internal doubts about an algae biofuels program and ongoing insider/institutional portfolio moves add headline risk. Exxon Scientists Had Doubts About Algae Biofuels. The Oil Giant Touted Them Anyway. Exxon Mobil slides as crude prices retreat on renewed Iran ceasefire optimism

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on XOM. HSBC boosted their target price on Exxon Mobil from $135.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Loop Capital set a $123.00 price target on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $171.00 price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their price objective on shares of Exxon Mobil from $142.00 to $137.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Exxon Mobil from $135.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $151.00.

Exxon Mobil Price Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $150.93 and its 200-day moving average is $129.06. The firm has a market cap of $670.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13.

Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The oil and gas company reported $1.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.63 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $80.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $77.98 billion. Exxon Mobil had a net margin of 8.68% and a return on equity of 11.21%. The business’s revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Exxon Mobil Corporation will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Exxon Mobil Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 12th were paid a $1.03 dividend. This represents a $4.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 12th. Exxon Mobil’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.58%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Darrin L. Talley sold 1,080 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.50, for a total transaction of $167,940.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 17,124 shares in the company, valued at $2,662,782. The trade was a 5.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold 11,460 shares of company stock worth $1,687,854 over the last 90 days. 0.03% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Exxon Mobil

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of XOM. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its stake in shares of Exxon Mobil by 2.6% during the third quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 215,892 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $24,342,000 after purchasing an additional 5,573 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Exxon Mobil by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 231,488 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $27,857,000 after purchasing an additional 14,233 shares during the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Exxon Mobil by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 306,658 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $34,576,000 after buying an additional 9,831 shares in the last quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC boosted its position in Exxon Mobil by 78.3% in the 3rd quarter. HORAN Wealth LLC now owns 13,180 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,486,000 after buying an additional 5,788 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New Age Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its position in Exxon Mobil by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 166,547 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $18,778,000 after buying an additional 8,853 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.80% of the company’s stock.

About Exxon Mobil

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE: XOM) is an integrated oil and gas company engaged in the exploration, production, refining, distribution and marketing of petroleum products and the manufacture and sale of petrochemicals. Its operations span the full energy value chain, including upstream exploration and development of crude oil and natural gas; midstream transportation and storage; and downstream refining, product distribution and retail. The company also produces a broad range of chemical products for industrial and consumer applications.

ExxonMobil markets fuels and lubricants under well-known brands such as Exxon, Mobil and Esso, and its Mobil 1 motor oil is a prominent consumer product.