Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Up 0.3% - Still a Buy?

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) shares rose 0.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $40.83 and last traded at $40.48. Approximately 1,632,223 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 10,854,356 shares. The stock had previously closed at $40.36.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut Occidental Petroleum from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Roth Capital set a $54.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $58.00 to $46.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $52.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler reduced their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $50.00 to $48.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $54.19.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Down 2.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $37.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.16 and a beta of 1.02. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.82.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.13. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.33%. The business had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.14 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast 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 given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum's previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.44%. Occidental Petroleum's dividend payout ratio is 39.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Occidental Petroleum

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 763,017 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $46.82 per share, with a total value of $35,724,455.94. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 264,941,431 shares in the company, valued at $12,404,557,799.42. This trade represents a 0.29 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 129.2% during the 1st 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 last quarter. 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.