Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading Up 1.6% – Still a Buy?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) shares rose 1.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $51.69 and last traded at $51.56. Approximately 2,802,227 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 8,698,704 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.77.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $65.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Wolfe Research boosted their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Susquehanna dropped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $65.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.10.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Up 2.0 %

The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.08. The company has a market capitalization of $48.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.48 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.92%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 3,614,015 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 264,178,414 shares in the company, valued at $12,046,535,678.40. The trade was a 1.39 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Gateway Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 3.9% in the second quarter. Gateway Advisory LLC now owns 4,847 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 5.2% during the third quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC increased its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 2.2% in the third quarter. Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,191 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $474,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 3.3% during the third quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,241 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empire Financial Management Company LLC grew its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Empire Financial Management Company LLC now owns 6,383 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $329,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors 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.