Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) Receives $71.94 Average PT from Brokerages

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $71.94.

Several equities analysts have commented on OXY shares. StockNews.com raised Occidental Petroleum from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. HSBC began coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They set a “hold” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank raised shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $63.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 24th.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Down 0.4 %

OXY stock opened at $64.39 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.47 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a 50-day moving average of $64.80 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.35. Occidental Petroleum has a 52-week low of $55.12 and a 52-week high of $71.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.69.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74. The firm had revenue of $7.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.93 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 20.63% and a net margin of 16.24%. The company’s revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.81 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is 22.51%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth approximately $206,000. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter valued at $1,055,000. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 36.7% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC now owns 8,575 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $557,000 after buying an additional 2,300 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC lifted its position in Occidental Petroleum by 66.2% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Shields & Co. LLC now owns 11,300 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $734,000 after buying an additional 4,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth about $1,009,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

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.