Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Down 1%

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) dropped 1% on Friday . The company traded as low as $66.93 and last traded at $67.17. Approximately 2,176,984 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 8,562,902 shares. The stock had previously closed at $67.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OXY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com upgraded Occidental Petroleum from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Susquehanna upped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Scotiabank upgraded shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $63.00 to $90.00 in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $71.94.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.34 and a beta of 1.64. The company’s 50 day moving average is $64.27 and its 200-day moving average is $61.35.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.74. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 16.24% and a return on equity of 20.63%. The firm had revenue of $7.53 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.93 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.61 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 22.51%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of OXY. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 75.2% in the first quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 389 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. TLW Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 86.0% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 519 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Company Profile

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.