Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading Down 1% – Should You Sell?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s stock price dropped 1% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $50.64 and last traded at $51.01. Approximately 2,512,190 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 8,953,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OXY has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 price target for the company. Scotiabank reduced their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Stephens upped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.10.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Down 1.7 %

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $49.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.19 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company 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 $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.74%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 22.92%.

Insider Transactions at Occidental Petroleum

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 2,477,362 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $46.25 per share, for a total transaction of $114,577,992.50. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 257,758,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,921,348,477.50. This trade represents a 0.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rule One Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at about $14,199,000. Stephens Inc. AR raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 221.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 15,079 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 10,382 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth approximately $2,509,000. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 27.7% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 70,580 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,638,000 after acquiring an additional 15,316 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp lifted its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 1,247.7% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 50,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,602,000 after acquiring an additional 46,740 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

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.