Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading 0.2% Higher – Here’s Why

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) shares were up 0.2% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $50.55 and last traded at $50.63. Approximately 3,307,060 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 9,564,789 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.55.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research upped their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Scotiabank decreased their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $80.00 to $65.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.19.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Up 0.1 %

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.25. 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 firm has a market cap of $47.48 billion, a PE ratio of 13.17 and a beta of 1.57.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is 22.92%.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 2,477,362 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $46.25 per share, for a total transaction of $114,577,992.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 257,758,886 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,921,348,477.50. This represents a 0.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.48% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of OXY. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the second quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 48.0% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 66,216 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,174,000 after acquiring an additional 21,462 shares in the last quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 45.1% in the second quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,813 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $682,000 after acquiring an additional 3,363 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 57,093 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $3,599,000 after purchasing an additional 1,425 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 18.1% in the 2nd quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 4,026 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares in the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is 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.