Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Down 0.6% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) were down 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $46.89 and last traded at $47.08. Approximately 3,244,889 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 67% from the average daily volume of 9,729,792 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.36.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on OXY shares. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com cut shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday. Susquehanna cut their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $65.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Stephens increased their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Occidental Petroleum from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the company from $54.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.71.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $43.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.18 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96. The business’s fifty day moving average is $49.10 and its 200 day moving average is $52.13.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 3,614,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $45.60 per share, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 1.39 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.31% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 27,976 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,382,000 after buying an additional 3,693 shares during the period. Lane Generational LLC increased its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Lane Generational LLC now owns 90,757 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,484,000 after acquiring an additional 7,179 shares in the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP raised its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 14.6% during the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 2,958,596 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $146,184,000 after acquiring an additional 377,952 shares during the period. Mcintyre Freedman & Flynn Investment Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. Mcintyre Freedman & Flynn Investment Advisers Inc. now owns 29,500 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clare Market Investments LLC purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,044,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.