ARS Investment Partners LLC Sells 18,645 Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

ARS Investment Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 56.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,412 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 18,645 shares during the quarter. ARS Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $712,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 160.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter valued at approximately $87,000. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth $93,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Occidental Petroleum

In other Occidental Petroleum news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 3,614,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $45.60 per share, for a total transaction of $164,799,084.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 264,178,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,046,535,678.40. This trade represents a 1.39 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.48% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. 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 research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $57.00 to $56.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $56.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Friday, November 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. They set a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.19.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of OXY opened at $51.98 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $48.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.54 and a beta of 1.57. The business’s fifty day moving average is $49.70 and its 200 day moving average is $53.40. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a 12-month low of $45.17 and a 12-month high of $71.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.96.

Occidental Petroleum Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 10th were given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 10th. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 22.92%.

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.