Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Sells 7,469 Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA reduced its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 219,516 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 7,469 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $10,846,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Atala Financial Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth $42,000. Finally, M Holdings Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of Occidental Petroleum stock opened at $49.34 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $46.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.22 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $48.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $49.84. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $44.70 and a one year high of $71.19.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.14 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.33%. Equities analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.95%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is 39.34%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on OXY. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Friday, February 21st. Roth Capital set a $54.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut Occidental Petroleum from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $54.00 to $45.00 in a report on Friday, January 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.82.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 763,017 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $46.82 per share, for a total transaction of $35,724,455.94. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 264,941,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. This trade represents a 0.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.31% 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.