6,531 Shares in Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) Acquired by American Alpha Advisors LLC

Key Points

• American Alpha Advisors LLC invested $322,000 in Occidental Petroleum, acquiring 6,531 shares in the first quarter.
• Occidental Petroleum reported earnings of $0.39 per share, exceeding estimates, although quarterly revenue declined 6.1% year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24, with an annualized yield of 2.2%, payable on October 15th to investors of record.

American Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 6,531 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $322,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 129.2% in the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 722 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 407 shares during the period. American National Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 615.2% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 987 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 849 shares during the period. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

OXY has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $47.00 to $46.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Barclays increased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $55.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $53.71.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

OXY stock traded up $0.55 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $44.70. 8,109,227 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 12,065,660. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $44.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $44.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 1.05. Occidental Petroleum Corporation has a 52 week low of $34.78 and a 52 week high of $58.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.00 billion, a PE ratio of 26.45 and a beta of 0.91.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.01. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 8.79% and a return on equity of 13.78%. The business had revenue of $6.41 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.03 earnings per share. Occidental Petroleum's revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Corporation will post 3.58 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 10th will be paid a $0.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. Occidental Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.80%.

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.