Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) Shares Sold by Eads & Heald Wealth Management

Eads & Heald Wealth Management decreased its position in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 21.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 3,805 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 1,070 shares during the period. Eads & Heald Wealth Management’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. TLW Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its position in Occidental Petroleum by 86.0% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 519 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of NYSE OXY traded down $2.43 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $65.91. The company had a trading volume of 3,872,975 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,718,102. 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 cap of $58.43 billion, a PE ratio of 17.48 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $62.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.05. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a 1-year low of $55.12 and a 1-year high of $71.18.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74. The business had revenue of $7.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 20.63% and a net margin of 16.24%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $0.22 per share. This is an increase from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.34%. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 22.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on OXY shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. HSBC assumed coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They set a “hold” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank raised Occidental Petroleum from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $63.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Occidental Petroleum has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.06.

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.