5 Favorite Defensive Stocks of Hedge Funds

4. Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM)

Number Of Hedge Fund Holders: 83

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), stylized as ExxonMobil, is an American multinational oil and gas corporation that is involved in the production, transportation and sale of crude oil, natural gas, petroleum products and other petrochemicals around the globe. One of the best defensive stocks to own on account of its 39 years of consistent dividend increases, Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) has gained 64.6% since the beginning of 2022, while the stock delivered a 68.3% return to shareholders in the previous year.

On June 7, Evercore ISI analyst Stephen Richardson upgraded Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) to Outperform from In Line with a price target of $120, up from $88. He sees long-term earnings growth to be driven by upstream upgrading as well as cost reductions and forecasts Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) to have an industry-leading ROCE target of 15% by 2025 and 17% by 2027. The analyst also stated that he sees the path to doubling earnings as likely “achievable.”

Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) reported that its earnings per share for the fiscal first quarter of 2022 came to $2.07 on April 29, falling short of EPS estimates by $0.16. In contrast, the company’s quarterly revenues came in at $90.5 billion, an increase of 53.01% on a year-over-year basis, outperforming revenue estimates by $6.93 billion.

83 hedge funds were long Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) at the end of the first quarter of 2022, with aggregate stakes worth $8.55 billion. Rajiv Jain’s GQG Partners is the most prominent investor in Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) with stakes worth approximately $4.27 billion in the company.

Saturna Capital mentioned Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM) in the firm’s fourth-quarter 2021 investor letter. Here is what the firm had to say:

“Few companies maintain their position at the top for more than a decade or two. One that did was Exxon, which appeared decennially from 1980 through 2010. In 2019 it was ranked 10th, but as of writing has dropped to 39th place.”