Rafferty Asset Management LLC Sells 19,212 Shares of Occidental Petroleum Corporation $OXY

Rafferty Asset Management LLC lowered its position in Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) by 7.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 247,245 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 19,212 shares during the period. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $11,682,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth approximately $35,517,000. DNB Asset Management AS increased its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 100.3% in the third quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 267,807 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $12,654,000 after purchasing an additional 134,128 shares in the last quarter. Gifford Fong Associates lifted its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 41.2% during the 3rd quarter. Gifford Fong Associates now owns 171,429 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $8,100,000 after buying an additional 50,000 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter worth $1,072,000. Finally, Freestone Capital Holdings LLC boosted its position in Occidental Petroleum by 521.0% in the 2nd quarter. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC now owns 46,707 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,962,000 after buying an additional 39,186 shares during the last quarter. 88.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Occidental Petroleum news, Director William R. Klesse acquired 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 16th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $38.98 per share, with a total value of $194,900.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 218,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,533,228.74. This represents a 2.34% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.49% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of OXY stock opened at $53.04 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a PE ratio of 32.95 and a beta of 0.34. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $44.69 and a 200-day moving average of $43.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.74. Occidental Petroleum Corporation has a one year low of $34.78 and a one year high of $53.33.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.13. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 9.14% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The business had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.80 EPS. Occidental Petroleum’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum Corporation will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be given a $0.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.0%. This is an increase from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on OXY shares. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $42.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $40.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Argus raised shares of Occidental Petroleum to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Zacks Research lowered shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $50.62.

More Occidental Petroleum News

Here are the key news stories impacting Occidental Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company fundamentals improving — recent coverage highlights Occidental’s substantial debt reduction and stronger free cash flow driven by its midstream and marketing segments, supporting credit metrics and dividend/repayment capacity. Occidental Petroleum: Buy, Sell, or Hold?
• Positive Sentiment: Debt-tender announced — Occidental launched a large cash tender for multiple series of senior notes and debentures in February; buying back debt can lower interest expense, simplify the capital structure and improve leverage metrics if funded prudently, which investors view as balance-sheet positive. Occidental Debt Tender Puts Balance Sheet And Valuation In Spotlight
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/coverage momentum — recent street coverage includes upgrades/positive notes (Wall Street Zen upgrade) that can support demand for the shares as sentiment improves. Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector tailwinds cited — energy-focused roundups recommend energy names as commodity prices rise, which is a positive backdrop for OXY but not company-specific enough to drive a major re-rating on its own. 2 No-Brainer Energy Stocks to Buy Right Now
• Neutral Sentiment: Minor rating move — Argus moved the stock to “hold” in a recent note; an upgrade to hold is a mild signal but not a strong buy catalyst. Read More
• Negative Sentiment: Berkshire write-down — Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a multibillion-dollar write-down tied in part to its Occidental stake (reported alongside Berkshire’s quarterly results and new CEO letter), which can be interpreted as a valuation haircut by a large investor and may weigh on sentiment. Warren Buffett’s successor Greg Abel publishes his first letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders Berkshire Hathaway profit falls on lower insurance income, Occidental writedown

Occidental Petroleum Company Profile

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) is an international energy company engaged primarily in the exploration, production and marketing of oil and natural gas. The company conducts upstream activities to discover and produce hydrocarbons and operates complementary midstream and marketing functions to transport and sell its production. Occidental also owns a chemicals business that manufactures and sells industrial chemicals and related products for a range of end markets.

Occidental’s operations are concentrated in the United States, with a significant presence in the Permian Basin, and it maintains exploration and production activities in several international regions, including parts of the Middle East, Latin America and Africa.