The Goldman Sachs Group Begins Coverage on Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY)

The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set a “neutral” rating and a $55.00 price target on the oil and gas producer’s stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 0.40% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently weighed in on OXY. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $76.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $81.00 to $78.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $65.00 to $56.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $76.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $65.00 to $56.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, September 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $67.31.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Up 2.5 %

Shares of NYSE:OXY opened at $54.78 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.97 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.75 and a current ratio of 1.04. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $55.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $60.67. Occidental Petroleum has a 52-week low of $49.75 and a 52-week high of $71.18.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.26. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 17.91% and a net margin of 16.62%. The firm had revenue of $6.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.68 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Occidental Petroleum

In related news, major shareholder Petroleum Corp /De/ Occidental sold 19,500,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, for a total transaction of $697,125,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 165,681,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,923,116,413.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in OXY. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 75.2% in the 1st quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 389 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum during the first quarter valued at about $34,000. Able Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the first quarter valued at about $44,000. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.