Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Shares Up 5.8% After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)’s stock price was up 5.8% on Wednesday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock traded as high as $52.17 and last traded at $51.66. Approximately 12,643,479 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 26% from the average daily volume of 10,053,400 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.84.

The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $6.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.14 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 15.89% and a return on equity of 15.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on OXY shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 16th. Wolfe Research boosted their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Raymond James increased their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $61.71.

Insider Activity

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased 3,614,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the insider now directly owns 264,178,414 shares in the company, valued at $12,046,535,678.40. This trade represents a 1.39 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have acquired 6,854,394 shares of company stock worth $315,101,532 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.48% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Segment Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 5.2% during the third quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,973 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $205,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,241 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $323,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Howard Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,234 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $209,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 27.1% during the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 1,164 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Empire Financial Management Company LLC lifted its position in Occidental Petroleum by 4.1% during the third quarter. Empire Financial Management Company LLC now owns 6,383 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $329,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $48.51 billion, a PE ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 1.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $49.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $51.45.

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.