Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Stock Price Down 0.6%

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s stock price dropped 0.6% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $56.81 and last traded at $57.01. Approximately 3,050,309 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 8,258,788 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 24th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $76.00 target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $81.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.69.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Down 0.9 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $60.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $62.12. The firm has a market cap of $50.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 1.61.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.26. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 17.91% and a net margin of 16.62%. The company had revenue of $6.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.68 EPS. Occidental Petroleum’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be paid a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 24.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 524,340 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $59.75 per share, with a total value of $31,329,315.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now owns 248,542,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,850,412,463. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 524,340 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $59.75 per share, for a total transaction of $31,329,315.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 248,542,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,850,412,463. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total value of $697,125,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 165,681,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,923,116,413.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have acquired a total of 4,656,747 shares of company stock valued at $278,664,028 in the last 90 days. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. grew its position 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 worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. Able Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.