Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading 0.1% Higher – Here’s Why

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s stock price shot up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $50.47 and last traded at $50.14. 2,056,290 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 9,110,854 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.08.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

OXY has been the topic of a number of research reports. Mizuho cut their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 16th. Barclays dropped their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Bank of America initiated coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $63.00 and set an “underperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $78.00 to $77.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.72.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $44.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.39 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a fifty day moving average of $52.97 and a 200 day moving average of $58.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

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 for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.26. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 16.62% and a return on equity of 17.91%. The firm 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 company posted $0.68 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total transaction of $697,125,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 165,681,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,923,116,413.50. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 160.0% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 1st quarter valued at about $44,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 2nd quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at about $87,000. 88.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.