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Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights: Exxon Mobil and Chevron

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For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – October 4, 2024 – Today, Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights Exxon Mobil (XOM - Free Report) and Chevron (CVX - Free Report) .

Should Investors Chase the Surge in ExxonMobil Shares?

Surging back toward its 52-week highs, Exxon Mobil’s stock is starting to turn heads after brewing tensions in the Middle East have spiked crude oil prices to over $70 a barrel again.

Outside the possibility of global oil supply chain issues, the rebound in the commodity price comes as OPEC+ had previously announced it would delay any production increases until December.

As reported by CNN, some analysts believe crude prices could soar to $100 a barrel this month. While this could be worrisome to consumers at the pump, energy investors may ponder if now is a good time to buy stock in Houston-based oil behemoth Exxon.

XOM Stock Rebound’s Sharply

Trading around $122 and less than 1% from its 52-week peak of $123.75 a share seen in April, Exxon’s stock has risen +7% in the last month.

More impressive, XOM is now sitting on +22% gains for the year. This has impressively topped its rival Chevron’s +1% and the broader Zacks Oils and Energy Market’s +6% while also edging the S&P 500 benchmark.

Extending the rally, day traders were encouraged when XOM blew past its 200-day simple moving average (SMA) of $109 and retook its 50-day SMA of $113.

Monitoring Exxon’s Outlook

Following a tougher-to-compete-against year that saw crude prices at an average of $83 a barrel, Exxon’s annual earnings are now expected to dip -14% to $8.10 per share. However, fiscal 2025 EPS is projected to stabilize and rise 6%.

Despite the dip in Exxon’s profitability, total sales are expected to be up 5% this year and are forecasted to rise another 4% in FY25 to $378.97 billion.

XOM Stock Valuation Comparison (P/E)

At current levels, Exxon’s stock trades at 15X forward earnings compared to Chevron’s 13.7X with their Zacks Oil and Gas-Integrated-International Industry average at 11.3X.

XOM still trades beneath the S&P 500’s 24X forward earnings multiple and at a slight discount to its decade-long P/E median of 17.7X.

Bottom Line

Exxon Mobil’s stock lands a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Amid the spike in crude prices, long-term investors may certainly be propelled to hold XOM which has a very respectable 3.13% annual dividend yield. That said, more upside from here will depend on what is hopefully a trend of positive earnings estimate revisions in the coming weeks.

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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.


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