StockNews.com Downgrades Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) to Sell

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) was downgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday.

OXY has been the subject of several other research reports. Stephens increased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Raymond James raised their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $58.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.10.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Occidental Petroleum stock opened at $48.56 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.54. Occidental Petroleum has a 12 month low of $45.17 and a 12 month high of $71.18. The company has a market cap of $45.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.65 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Insider Activity at Occidental Petroleum

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 2,477,362 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were bought at an average price of $46.25 per share, with a total value of $114,577,992.50. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 257,758,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,921,348,477.50. This trade represents a 0.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of OXY. Rule One Partners LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at $14,199,000. Stephens Inc. AR boosted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 10,382 shares during the period. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter worth about $2,509,000. Cerity Partners LLC increased its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 27.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 70,580 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $3,638,000 after purchasing an additional 15,316 shares during the period. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 1,247.7% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 50,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,602,000 after acquiring an additional 46,740 shares in the last quarter. 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.