Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Stock Price Up 2.2% – Still a Buy?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) shares traded up 2.2% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $47.63 and last traded at $47.37. 4,413,374 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 55% from the average session volume of 9,761,761 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.37.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Truist Financial raised their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Raymond James raised their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.71.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Up 2.4 %

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $49.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $52.41. The firm has a market cap of $44.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.36 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 3,614,015 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 264,178,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,046,535,678.40. This trade represents a 1.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Pring Turner Capital Group Inc. increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Pring Turner Capital Group Inc. now owns 73,354 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $3,624,000 after buying an additional 3,935 shares during the period. Skylands Capital LLC increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 23.0% during the 4th quarter. Skylands Capital LLC now owns 145,084 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,169,000 after buying an additional 27,175 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,054,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $179,000. Finally, Howard Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,234 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares in the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.