Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Stock Price Up 2.7% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) were up 2.7% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $39.20 and last traded at $38.83. Approximately 3,852,897 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 12,774,107 shares. The stock had previously closed at $37.80.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on OXY. TD Cowen lowered shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $68.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $52.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Raymond James lowered Occidental Petroleum from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $81.00 to $64.00 in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Friday, February 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $55.81.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The company has a market cap of $37.33 billion, a PE ratio of 16.28 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a fifty day moving average of $45.75 and a 200-day moving average of $48.72.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.13. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 11.37%. The firm had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. Equities research analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.42%. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 39.34%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 763,017 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $46.82 per share, with a total value of $35,724,455.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 264,941,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. The trade was a 0.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,234 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $209,000 after buying an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 27.1% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,164 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 8,058 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 11,208 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 20.2% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,631 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $81,000 after buying an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Occidental Petroleum Company Profile

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.