Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Up 0.8% – Here’s What Happened

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) shares rose 0.8% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $48.00 and last traded at $47.50. Approximately 5,760,759 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 40% from the average daily volume of 9,585,931 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.13.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on OXY. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $63.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $80.00 to $68.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $58.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.10.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.80. The company has a market capitalization of $45.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.53 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is 22.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 2,477,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.25 per share, for a total transaction of $114,577,992.50. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 257,758,886 shares in the company, valued at $11,921,348,477.50. This represents a 0.97 % 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. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Occidental Petroleum by 160.0% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter worth approximately $87,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $93,000. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.