Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY)

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Traders purchased 120,397 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 96% compared to the typical volume of 61,466 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

OXY has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. HSBC boosted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $48.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.24.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director William R. Klesse acquired 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $38.98 per share, with a total value of $194,900.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 218,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,533,228.74. This trade represents a 2.34% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in OXY. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 68.5% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 750 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the period. Rossby Financial LCC grew its position in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 155.0% in the 4th quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 765 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the period. City Holding Co. increased its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 250.0% during the 3rd quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 700 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Binnacle Investments Inc bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Occidental Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Geopolitical risk: Reports of an Iranian tanker strike near Kuwait and broader Middle East conflict concerns are pushing oil prices and lifting shares of oil producers, benefiting OXY. Occidental Petroleum Stock Rises Amid Middle East Conflict Concerns
• Positive Sentiment: Rising oil prices: Recent rallies in crude have been a primary catalyst for OXY’s move higher — energy leverage means rising WTI boosts Occidental’s revenues and margins. Why Occidental Petroleum Stock Rocketed Nearly 17% in February
• Positive Sentiment: Unusual bullish options flow: Traders bought ~120,397 OXY calls (up ~96% vs. average), signaling strong speculative bullish interest and potential further upside pressure on the stock as market participants position for higher oil/stock levels.
• Positive Sentiment: Investor confidence / narrative tailwinds: Coverage highlighting Warren Buffett’s stake and bullish thesis (Occidental’s strategic reset, divestitures, and Berkshire backing) is reinforcing investor demand for OXY as an oil-exposure play. Warren Buffett’s Oil Bet Looks Genius, Here Is What to Buy Next
• Positive Sentiment: Debt management: Occidental announced and updated cash tender offers and consent solicitations for several senior notes and increased the aggregate cap on purchases — moves that reduce outstanding debt and are generally viewed positively by bond and equity investors. Occidental Announces Total Consideration for its Cash Tender Offers…
• Neutral Sentiment: Early tender results / upsized offer: Occidental reported early tender results and increased the maximum aggregate principal amount it will accept — this signals active liability management but uses cash, so the net impact depends on financing and future cash flow. Occidental Announces Early Tender Results and Upsize…
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst target moves: UBS and Piper Sandler each raised OXY price targets (UBS to $55, Piper Sandler to $54) but maintained neutral ratings — modestly supportive for the stock, though not a full upgrade. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector commentary and attention: MarketBeat, Zacks, and other outlets are spotlighting OXY as a high-conviction energy play amid supply concerns; useful for retail/institutional interest but not an immediate earnings driver. Chaos & Crude: 3 Energy Stocks Built to Thrive…

Occidental Petroleum Stock Up 2.0%

Occidental Petroleum stock opened at $54.28 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Occidental Petroleum has a 1-year low of $34.78 and a 1-year high of $56.34. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.25. The company has a market cap of $53.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.71 and a beta of 0.34.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.02 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 9.14% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $0.26 per share. This represents a $1.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 59.63%.

Occidental Petroleum Company Profile

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) is an international energy company engaged primarily in the exploration, production and marketing of oil and natural gas. The company conducts upstream activities to discover and produce hydrocarbons and operates complementary midstream and marketing functions to transport and sell its production. Occidental also owns a chemicals business that manufactures and sells industrial chemicals and related products for a range of end markets.

Occidental’s operations are concentrated in the United States, with a significant presence in the Permian Basin, and it maintains exploration and production activities in several international regions, including parts of the Middle East, Latin America and Africa.