Chevron Stock Climbs After Citi Upgrade, Price Target Hike: Retail Chatter Hits 6-Month High

Oil giant Chevron Corp ($CVX) shares were trading over 1% higher on Tuesday after Citi reportedly upgraded its rating on the shares to ‘Buy’ from ‘Neutral’ while raising the price target to $185 from $145.

Citi noted that Chevron stock trades at a discount versus its peers and this has created an attractive entry point. Analyst Alastair Syme expects that the valuation gap between Chevron and Exxon Mobil Corp ($XOM) will reach “a historically wide gap” of 20% as early as 2026.

The analyst attributed Chevron’s relative weakness in valuation to the firm’s tussle with ExxonMobil regarding ownership of Hess’ oil assets in Guyana.

“It is this valuation gap that we think positions investors to take a view around the unknown outcome of the Hess arbitration in 2025; the downside looks protected, the upside is significant. Added to that is the potential of high-impact exploration in Namibia in the coming months,” the analyst wrote in a note to clients, according to a CNBC report.

Following the upgrade, retail sentiment on Stocktwits inched up into the ‘bullish’ territory (71/100) from the ‘neutral’ zone a day ago, accompanied by high retail chatter that hit near 6-month highs.

Chevron's Sentiment Meter and Message Volume as of 10:52 a.m. ET on Nov. 26, 2024 | Source: Stocktwits

Most followers of the ticker on Stocktwits are expressing optimism on the stock’s potential in coming times.

During the third quarter, the company managed to beat earnings expectations and also returned record cash to shareholders.

Revenue came in at $50.67 billion compared to a Wall Street estimate of $48.99 billion while earnings per share (EPS) came in at $2.51 versus an estimate of $2.43.

Chevron shares have gained over 8% on a year-to-date basis.

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