Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) Given Consensus Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) have received an average rating of “Hold” from the twenty-one ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, twelve have given a hold recommendation, six have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $61.55.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on OXY. Raymond James boosted their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Friday, November 8th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Occidental Petroleum from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $54.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of OXY opened at $48.50 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $49.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $51.19. The company has a market cap of $45.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. Occidental Petroleum has a twelve month low of $45.17 and a twelve month high of $71.18.

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, 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.14 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.34%.

Insider Activity at Occidental Petroleum

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 763,017 shares of the company’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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 264,941,431 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. The trade was a 0.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders bought a total of 6,854,394 shares of company stock worth $315,101,532 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Certified Advisory Corp acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $476,000. Rule One Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth $14,199,000. Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 221.0% during the third quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 15,079 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $777,000 after acquiring an additional 10,382 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP lifted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 5.4% during the fourth 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. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at about $2,509,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

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.