Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Now Covered by Analysts at Barclays

Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) in a report issued on Wednesday, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $73.00 price target on the oil and gas producer’s stock.

OXY has been the topic of a number of other research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Occidental Petroleum from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. HSBC assumed coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Monday. They set a hold rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $62.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Stephens restated an overweight rating and set a $74.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Occidental Petroleum has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $70.47.

Occidental Petroleum Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:OXY opened at $68.93 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.10 billion, a PE ratio of 17.63 and a beta of 1.64. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $61.99 and its 200 day moving average is $60.98. Occidental Petroleum has a 12 month low of $55.12 and a 12 month high of $69.58.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 16.24% and a return on equity of 20.63%. The company had revenue of $7.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. Occidental Petroleum’s revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.28%. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is 22.51%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter worth $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the third quarter worth $27,000. TLW Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 86.0% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 519 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter worth $35,000. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.