Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Up 0.1% – Here’s Why

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) were up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $50.47 and last traded at $50.14. Approximately 2,056,290 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 9,110,854 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.08.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on OXY. Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $63.00 and set an “underperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Susquehanna cut their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $78.00 to $77.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $81.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $65.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Occidental Petroleum currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.72.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $44.94 billion, a PE ratio of 12.39 and a beta of 1.57. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $52.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $6.88 billion for 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%. Occidental Petroleum’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.68 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In related news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total value of $697,125,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 165,681,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,923,116,413.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. 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.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Himalaya Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the second quarter valued at $92,433,000. Clean Energy Transition LLP purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth approximately $67,601,000. Sarasin & Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $63,880,000. Scharf Investments LLC purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,744,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 16.8% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,707,555 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $233,687,000 after purchasing an additional 532,318 shares during 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.