[pwal id=”34231743″ description=”CVX”][/pwal]

If you have concerns that the market might be peaking, Chevron (NYSE: CVX) is a one of the stocks that should be considered to protect your gains.  Like Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) and ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP), which were covered in previous articles on this site, Chevron is BIG OIL is every meaning of the word.

The market capitalization for Chevron is over $230 billion.  Its earnings are up more than 40% on a quarterly basis with a profit margin of over 10%.  That is better than others in the energy sector.

What is also better is the dividend yield of Chevron.  At present, Chevron has a dividend yield of over 3%.  That is much better than the average dividend of around 2% for a member of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.  That yield provides downside protection if the market declines.  The dividend yield for ConocoPhillips is 4.37%.  For Exxon Mobil, it is 2.51%.  Chevron, ConcoPhillips, and Exxon Mobil all have the cash flow to raise their dividends.

For 2013, Chevron is up 11.47%.  Over the last year of market action, Chevron has risen by 15.52%.  Now trading around $119 a share, the mean analyst target price for Chevron over the next year of market action is $126.54.

As the chart below shows, both Chevron and ExxonMobil have been surging for 2013.