Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the fifteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $71.56.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. StockNews.com raised shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 24th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 1,060,653 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $59.59 per share, with a total value of $63,204,312.27. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 254,947,063 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,192,295,484.17. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders acquired a total of 4,656,747 shares of company stock valued at $278,664,028 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OXY. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 75.2% in the first quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 389 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $27,000. TLW Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 86.0% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 519 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of OXY opened at $60.92 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $54.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.64 and a beta of 1.59. Occidental Petroleum has a twelve month low of $55.12 and a twelve month high of $71.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.82. The company has a 50 day moving average of $63.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $61.48.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.70 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 15.62% and a return on equity of 17.50%. Occidental Petroleum’s revenue was down 17.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.09 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 10th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.44%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.04%.

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.