Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Downgraded to "Sell" Rating by StockNews.com

On February 27, 2025, Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) was downgraded by analysts at StockNews.com. The rating was changed from "hold" to "sell" in a recent research note published on Thursday.

In addition to StockNews.com's downgrade, other analysts have also provided their insights regarding the company's stock. Susquehanna, for example, adjusted its target price for Occidental Petroleum, reducing it from $77.00 to $65.00, while still maintaining a "positive" rating in a note released on November 14. Similarly, TD Cowen reduced their price target from $80.00 to $68.00 and kept a "buy" rating on November 12. On the same day, Wolfe Research increased their target price from $73.00 to $75.00 and maintained a "buy" rating. Raymond James also raised their price target from $77.00 to $78.00, granting it a "strong-buy" rating on November 21. Additionally, on February 19, Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating with a target price of $71.00.

In total, three analysts have given the stock a sell rating, twelve have assigned hold ratings, six have issued buy ratings, and one has provided a strong buy rating. According to data from MarketBeat, the average rating for Occidental Petroleum is currently "hold" with a consensus price target set at $61.55.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Overview

On Thursday, Occidental Petroleum's stock opened at $48.50. Over the past year, the stock has had a low of $45.17 and a high of $71.18. The company's 50-day simple moving average stands at $49.36, while the 200-day simple moving average is $51.19. Financially, the company's quick ratio is at 0.76, and the current ratio is at 0.95. The debt-to-equity ratio is also at 0.95. The market capitalization of Occidental Petroleum is approximately $45.52 billion, with a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88 and a beta coefficient of 1.55.

Recently, Occidental Petroleum announced its earnings results on February 18. The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.80 for the quarter, exceeding the analysts’ expectations of $0.67 by $0.13. However, the company’s revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter was below analyst projections of $7.14 billion. Occidental Petroleum noted a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.33%. Analysts predict that the company will report an average EPS of 3.58 for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions

In other news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc. acquired 763,017 shares of Occidental Petroleum on February 7. The shares were purchased at an average price of $46.82 each, totaling around $35.72 million. After this acquisition, Berkshire Hathaway now owns 264,941,431 shares of the company, valued at approximately $12.40 billion, marking a 0.29% increase in their stock ownership. This transaction was officially reported in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, accessible through their website. In the past three months, insiders have purchased a total of 6,854,394 shares, totaling roughly $315.10 million, while corporate insiders currently hold 0.31% of the stock.

Institutional Investor Activity

Various institutional investors have been actively buying and selling shares in Occidental Petroleum. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its holdings by 34.8% during the fourth quarter, now owning 45,355 shares valued at $2.24 million after buying an additional 11,720 shares. Mackenzie Financial Corp also raised its stake by 47.7% during the same period, holding 50,158 shares worth approximately $2.48 million following the acquisition of 16,188 shares. Additionally, Formidable Asset Management LLC grew its position by 41.6%, bringing their total to 7,665 shares valued at about $379,000. New stakes were also taken by Pacific Point Advisors LLC and Neo Ivy Capital Management, valued at approximately $494,000 and $1.43 million, respectively. Overall, institutional investors own around 88.70% of Occidental Petroleum’s stock.

About Occidental Petroleum

Occidental Petroleum Corporation, along with its subsidiaries, focuses on acquiring, exploring, and developing oil and gas properties in various regions, including the United States, the Middle East, and North Africa. The company operates through three segments: Oil and Gas, Chemical, and Midstream and Marketing. The Oil and Gas segment is responsible for exploring and producing oil and condensate, natural gas liquids, and natural gas.

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