Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) PT Raised to $70.00 at UBS Group

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) had its target price hoisted by UBS Group from $69.00 to $70.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens reiterated an overweight rating and issued a $76.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $69.00 to $65.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 24th. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $90.00 to $80.00 and set a sector outperform rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. They set an outperform rating and a $81.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $71.69.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of Occidental Petroleum stock opened at $56.10 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $60.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $62.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.33 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Occidental Petroleum has a 12 month low of $55.04 and a 12 month high of $71.18.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.26. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 17.91% and a net margin of 16.62%. The company had revenue of $6.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 10th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.57%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.04%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 524,340 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $59.75 per share, with a total value of $31,329,315.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 248,542,468 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,850,412,463. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of Occidental Petroleum stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 165,681,578 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,923,116,413.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 524,340 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $59.75 per share, for a total transaction of $31,329,315.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 248,542,468 shares in the company, valued at $14,850,412,463. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders acquired 4,656,747 shares of company stock valued at $278,664,028. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of OXY. Swedbank AB bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter worth about $12,547,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 139.4% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 78,529 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,104,000 after buying an additional 45,722 shares during the last quarter. Bridgefront Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth $763,000. Alberta Investment Management Corp grew its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 143.2% during the fourth quarter. Alberta Investment Management Corp now owns 36,475 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,178,000 after acquiring an additional 21,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 904,081 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $58,757,000 after acquiring an additional 8,863 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.