Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading Up 3.3% - Here's Why

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report)'s stock price rose 3.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $40.59 and last traded at $39.72. Approximately 13,284,802 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 23% from the average daily volume of 10,816,904 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Occidental Petroleum from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $49.00 to $42.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley set a $58.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res raised Occidental Petroleum to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $54.76.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.56 billion, a PE ratio of 16.38 and a beta of 1.02. The business's 50 day moving average is $45.39 and its 200 day moving average is $48.43.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.13. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 16.33% and a net margin of 11.37%. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.14 billion. On average, equities research analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.40%. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Occidental Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.34%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 763,017 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $46.82 per share, with a total value of $35,724,455.94. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 264,941,431 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. This trade represents a 0.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Virtu Financial LLC lifted its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 1,181.3% in the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 65,437 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $3,373,000 after buying an additional 60,330 shares in the last quarter. Rule One Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth $14,199,000. PVG Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at about $411,000. Blankinship & Foster LLC purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $314,000. Finally, Tidal Investments LLC boosted its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 67.9% during the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 80,025 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $4,124,000 after buying an additional 32,356 shares during the period. 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.