By Barbara Kollmeyer Order Reprints Text size
A general view of a Total petrol station in Kampala, Uganda, on Jan. 28, 2020. AFP via Getty Images
They say it’s lonely at the top.
For France’s Total, years of dominance on the oil patch are over, say analysts at Cowen, who downgraded the company to market perform from outperform in a note to clients on Tuesday. Jason Gabelman and George Kuhle say they continue to like Total’s strategy, but it faces a tougher two years ahead.
“TOT is trading at an elevated premium versus peers while we expect its balance sheet advantage to shrink to in-line with peers. Production growth will slow after leading the group while nonproductive capex rises,” says the pair.
Exxon Mobil in August, the stock was trading under $40 and investors were betting that it would have to cut its dividend. One analyst even suggested that it merge with
Chevron and change its name. But Exxon hasn’t faded into obscurity. Instead, the stock has started gaining new fans.
In just the past week, three analysts have upgraded Exxon to Buy ratings. One upgrade came from J.P. Morgan analyst Phil Gresh, who predicted the stock can rise to $56 from around $48.
Gresh admits he isn’t early to this call. The stock is up nearly 50% from its fall bottom, and recently rose for nine trading days in a row a streak that ended on Friday on a report that the Securities and Exchange Commission was looking into Exxon’s valuation of some of its holdings. But Exxon still trails other oil producers.
Stocks were lower Friday morning even after President-Elect Joe Biden unveiled details of a $1.9 trillion fiscal stimulus plan as retail sales slumped.
Exxon Mobil, everything seems to be working out for the company in 2021.
As of Thursday afternoon, shares of Exxon (ticker: XOM) up more than 4% on the day were on track for their ninth consecutive gain. The stock has risen 22% in that period. It has gotten some help from regulators in recent days. A pipeline in the Permian Basin in which the company has a 30% stake won approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission this week.
And Exxon is suddenly getting a warm welcome on Wall Street, raising the possibility that fund managers will give it another look. Analysts at both J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley are now urging investors to buy the stock. J.P. Morgan hadn’t raised its rating on Exxon to Buy since at least 2014.