Imperial Oil (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) Stock Breaks Below 200-Day Moving Average – Should You Sell?

Imperial Oil Limited (NYSEAMERICAN:IMO) (TSE:IMO) crossed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $124.55 and traded as low as $121.57. Imperial Oil shares last traded at $123.54, with a volume of 728,066 shares.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

IMO has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Scotiabank reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research report on Monday, October 19th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research report on Monday, September 14th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Desjardins upgraded Imperial Oil to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, TD Securities reissued a “sell” rating on shares of Imperial Oil in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $116.00.

Imperial Oil Price Performance

The company’s 50 day moving average price is $128.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $124.79. The company has a market capitalization of $59.80 billion, a PE ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Imperial Oil Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 3rd will be given a dividend of C$0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 3rd. Imperial Oil’s payout ratio is 38.09%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Imperial Oil

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of IMO. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Imperial Oil in the 1st quarter valued at about $93,097,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. lifted its position in Imperial Oil by 3.3% during the third quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 734,540 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $90,977,000 after buying an additional 23,508 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank lifted its position in Imperial Oil by 23.6% during the first quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 569,676 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $74,508,000 after buying an additional 108,700 shares in the last quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its position in Imperial Oil by 48.7% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 234,940 shares of the energy company’s stock valued at $30,008,000 after buying an additional 76,936 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in Imperial Oil by 8.1% during the third quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 243,246 shares of the energy company’s stock worth $29,979,000 after buying an additional 18,202 shares during the period. 20.74% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Imperial Oil

Imperial Oil is an integrated energy company based in Calgary, Alberta, with operations spanning oil and natural gas production, refining, and the marketing of fuels and other petroleum products. Founded in 1880, it is one of Canada’s longest-standing petroleum companies and is majority-owned by Exxon Mobil. The company produces oil and natural gas from conventional resources and oil sands, including operations at Cold Lake and Kearl, as well as its participation in the Syncrude project. Its downstream business refines crude oil into transportation fuels and other products, which it sells in Canada primarily through the Esso and Mobil brands.