There's an old saying on Wall Street about insider buying: there are many possible reasons to sell a stock, but only one reason to buy. Back on February 10, Exxon Mobil Corp's CEO, Darren W. Woods, invested $171,083.40 into 2,858 shares of XOM, for a cost per share of $59.86. Bargain hunters tend to pay particular attention to insider buys like this one, because presumably the only reason an insider would take their hard-earned cash and use it to buy stock of their company in the open market, is that they expect to make money. In trading on Tuesday, bargain hunters could buy shares of Exxon Mobil Corp (Symbol: XOM) and achieve a cost basis even cheaper than Woods, with shares changing hands as low as $59.69 per share. Exxon Mobil Corp shares are currently trading off about 1.5% on the day. The chart below shows the one year performance of XOM shares, versus its 200 day moving average:
Looking at the chart above, XOM's low point in its 52 week range is $59.62 per share, with $83.49 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $59.77. By comparison, below is a table showing the prices at which XOM insider buying was recorded over the last six months:
| Purchased | Insider | Title | Shares | Price/Share | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02/10/2020 | Darren W. Woods | Chairman and CEO | 2,858 | $59.86 | $171,083.40 |
The current annualized dividend paid by Exxon Mobil Corp is $3.48/share, currently paid in quarterly installments, and its most recent dividend ex-date was on 02/10/2020. Below is a long-term dividend history chart for XOM, which can be of good help in judging whether the most recent dividend with approx. 5.7% annualized yield is likely to continue.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
