Chevron (NYSE:CVX) Stock Price Down 2.2% – Here’s Why

Chevron Co. (NYSE:CVX)’s stock price fell 2.2% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $148.80 and last traded at $148.62. 2,030,437 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 72% from the average session volume of 7,265,309 shares. The stock had previously closed at $152.00.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on CVX shares. Citigroup upgraded shares of Chevron from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $145.00 to $185.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Raymond James lowered their target price on Chevron from $180.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Chevron from $188.00 to $184.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Chevron in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Chevron from $195.00 to $194.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Chevron has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.13.

Chevron Stock Up 2.3 %

The company has a market cap of $275.51 billion, a PE ratio of 16.10, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $153.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $151.62.

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The oil and gas company reported $2.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.42 by ($0.36). Chevron had a net margin of 8.71% and a return on equity of 11.44%. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.45 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Chevron Co. will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Chevron Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.71 per share. This represents a $6.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.37%. This is an increase from Chevron’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Chevron’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.37%.

Insider Activity at Chevron

In other news, VP Jeff B. Gustavson sold 9,325 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.50, for a total transaction of $1,422,062.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $161,192.50. This represents a 89.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Chevron

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CVX. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Chevron by 11.5% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 31,108,760 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,581,137,000 after purchasing an additional 3,203,899 shares in the last quarter. RPG Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Chevron by 3.4% in the third quarter. RPG Investment Advisory LLC now owns 121,167 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $17,844,000 after acquiring an additional 3,933 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Chevron by 0.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 159,105,244 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $23,431,429,000 after buying an additional 874,962 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC raised its stake in Chevron by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 3,147,686 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $463,560,000 after acquiring an additional 171,089 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Chevron during the 4th quarter worth approximately $594,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.42% of the company’s stock.

About Chevron

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification of liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas; and carbon capture and storage, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant.