Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Up 2.6% – Should You Buy?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s stock price shot up 2.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $50.82 and last traded at $50.70. 4,829,176 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 50% from the average session volume of 9,638,160 shares. The stock had previously closed at $49.41.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

OXY has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $56.00 target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Friday, November 8th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.10.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Up 1.6 %

The company’s 50-day moving average is $49.49 and its 200-day moving average is $54.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $47.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.07 and a beta of 1.57.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.75%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.92%.

Insider Activity at Occidental Petroleum

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 3,614,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 264,178,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,046,535,678.40. This trade represents a 1.39 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 160.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth $50,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at about $87,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at about $93,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.