Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading Up 1.6% – Should You Buy?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s stock price rose 1.6% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $51.24 and last traded at $50.99. Approximately 1,994,065 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 9,430,317 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.20.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James increased their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.19.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $49.71 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $53.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market cap of $47.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15 and a beta of 1.57.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 22.92%.

Insider Transactions at Occidental Petroleum

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 3,614,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 264,178,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,046,535,678.40. This represents a 1.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 160.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $50,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 224.0% during the 4th quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,555 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at $87,000. 88.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Occidental Petroleum

Occidental Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and gas properties in the United States, the Middle East, and North Africa. It operates through three segments: Oil and Gas, Chemical, and Midstream and Marketing. The company's Oil and Gas segment explores for, develops, and produces oil and condensate, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas.