Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading 3.6% Higher - Should You Buy?

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) rose 3.6% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $39.83 and last traded at $39.85. Approximately 2,877,795 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 10,763,769 shares. The stock had previously closed at $38.45.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on OXY shares. Stephens reduced their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $60.00 to $58.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $51.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 17th. StockNews.com cut Occidental Petroleum from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. TD Cowen downgraded Occidental Petroleum from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $68.00 to $45.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $55.33.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $45.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $48.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The firm has a market cap of $36.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.00 and a beta of 1.02.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.67 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.14 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.33%. On average, analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. Occidental Petroleum's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 763,017 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.82 per share, for a total transaction of $35,724,455.94. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 264,941,431 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. This represents a 0.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of OXY. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, 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 worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.