Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading Up 0.7%

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s share price rose 0.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $53.09 and last traded at $52.59. Approximately 3,145,099 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 8,606,246 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.24.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on OXY shares. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $76.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Mizuho decreased their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 12th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.60.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $56.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $45.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.97 and a beta of 1.58.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.26. The business had revenue of $6.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 17.91% and a net margin of 16.62%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.68 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is presently 24.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total transaction of $697,125,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 165,681,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,923,116,413.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 75.2% during the 1st quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 389 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the first quarter worth about $44,000. 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.