J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Sells 2,041 Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. decreased its holdings in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 19.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 8,558 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 2,041 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $511,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth $27,000. TLW Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 86.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 519 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Up 0.6 %

OXY stock opened at $67.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.24 and a beta of 1.64. The business has a 50-day moving average of $63.77 and a 200-day moving average of $61.25. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a fifty-two week low of $55.12 and a fifty-two week high of $71.18.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.74. The company had revenue of $7.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 20.63% and a net margin of 16.24%. Occidental Petroleum’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.31%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on OXY shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Raymond James decreased their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $71.94.

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.