Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Raised to Buy at HSBC

Key Points

• Occidental Petroleum was upgraded by HSBC from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating, with a new price target of $55.00, indicating a potential upside of 24.11% from its current price.
• Recent analysts' ratings show a mixed outlook, with five analysts rating the stock as a buy and the majority (eighteen) assigning a hold rating.
• Occidental Petroleum reported an earnings per share of $0.39 for the last quarter, beating expectations, despite a 6.1% decrease in revenue year-over-year.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at HSBC from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $55.00 price objective on the oil and gas producer's stock, up from their prior price objective of $48.00. HSBC's price objective points to a potential upside of 24.11% from the company's current price.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $47.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of 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. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $65.00 to $58.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 15th. Melius began coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $64.00 price target for the company. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $45.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Occidental Petroleum presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $54.00.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

OXY stock opened at $44.32 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $45.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $43.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.22 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. Occidental Petroleum has a 12-month low of $34.78 and a 12-month high of $56.49.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.38 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $6.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.29 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 8.79% and a return on equity of 13.78%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.03 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of OXY. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 6,237.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 336,438 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $16,607,000 after buying an additional 331,129 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 53.5% during the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 12,254 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $605,000 after buying an additional 4,270 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. grew its position in Occidental Petroleum by 22.8% in the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 11,970 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $591,000 after acquiring an additional 2,222 shares during the last quarter. Insight Advisors LLC PA grew its position in Occidental Petroleum by 11.4% in the 1st quarter. Insight Advisors LLC PA now owns 5,395 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $266,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intellectus Partners LLC grew its position in Occidental Petroleum by 5.7% in the 1st quarter. Intellectus Partners LLC now owns 21,051 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $1,044,000 after acquiring an additional 1,141 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.

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