Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading Up 0.3% - Time to Buy?

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) traded up 0.3% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $40.83 and last traded at $40.48. 1,632,223 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 10,854,356 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.36.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on OXY shares. Raymond James lowered Occidental Petroleum from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $81.00 to $64.00 in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Susquehanna decreased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Occidental Petroleum from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Occidental Petroleum has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $54.19.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $37.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock's fifty day moving average is $44.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $48.03.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.14 billion. On average, analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $0.24 dividend. This is an increase from Occidental Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.38%. Occidental Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.34%.

Insider Activity

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 763,017 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.82 per share, for a total transaction of $35,724,455.94. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 264,941,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. The trade was a 0.29 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available 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 added to or reduced their stakes in OXY. Certified Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at $476,000. Rule One Partners LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $14,199,000. Benchmark Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth about $642,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 613,647 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $30,320,000 after acquiring an additional 6,461 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sarasin & Partners LLP boosted its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 990,521 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $48,942,000 after purchasing an additional 50,983 shares in the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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