Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Trading 5.1% Higher Following Insider Buying Activity

Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) rose 5.1% on Friday following insider buying activity. The company traded as high as $48.00 and last traded at $47.68. 9,633,576 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 9,514,071 shares. The stock had previously closed at $45.36.

Specifically, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc acquired 3,614,015 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $45.60 per share, with a total value of $164,799,084.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 264,178,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,046,535,678.40. This trade represents a 1.39 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 2,477,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 17th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $46.25 per share, for a total transaction of $114,577,992.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider now owns 257,758,886 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,921,348,477.50. This trade represents a 0.97 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OXY has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research lifted their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th. UBS Group decreased their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $58.00 to $51.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.10.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Up 3.9 %

The company has a market cap of $44.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.57. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $50.03 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $55.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.00.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 10th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.92%.

Institutional Trading of Occidental Petroleum

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OXY. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 7.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 773,762 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,880,000 after acquiring an additional 51,042 shares in the last quarter. Alternative Investment Advisors LLC. bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,002,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 1.8% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 149,387 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,699,000 after buying an additional 2,700 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 13.2% in the third quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 57,365 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,957,000 after buying an additional 6,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp grew its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 1,247.7% during the third quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 50,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,602,000 after buying an additional 46,740 shares during the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Occidental Petroleum Company Profile

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.