Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Stock Price Down 0.3% – What’s Next?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) dropped 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $51.72 and last traded at $51.91. Approximately 3,137,580 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 9,503,822 shares. The stock had previously closed at $52.08.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OXY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup lowered 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 report on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $67.00 to $58.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 9th. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $56.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Friday, November 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.19.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.76. The firm has a market cap of $48.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 1.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $49.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $53.60.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 3,614,015 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now directly owns 264,178,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,046,535,678.40. This represents a 1.39 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 160.0% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at $50,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 224.0% during the fourth quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,555 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,075 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter valued at $87,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% 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.