AXQ Capital LP Buys New Position in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

AXQ Capital LP purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 10,973 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $542,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Certified Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth approximately $476,000. Rule One Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $14,199,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 613,647 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $30,320,000 after buying an additional 6,461 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP grew 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 worth $48,942,000 after acquiring an additional 50,983 shares during the period. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter worth about $2,509,000. 88.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:OXY opened at $48.11 on Friday. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $44.70 and a 12-month high of $71.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.72 and a beta of 1.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $48.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.01.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.14 billion. On average, equities analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors 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 yield of 2.00%. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $52.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. UBS Group upped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $54.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $51.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $71.00 target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $60.45.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 763,017 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The shares were bought 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 directly owns 264,941,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. This represents a 0.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.31% 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.