Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) Shares Sold by South Dakota Investment Council

South Dakota Investment Council trimmed its holdings in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 329,751 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 10,500 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $19,689,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 8.6% in the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 156,279 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $10,139,000 after buying an additional 12,349 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 8.9% in the fourth quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,825 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the period. J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Occidental Petroleum during the third quarter worth $29,665,000. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth $1,006,000. Finally, Koshinski Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 53.9% in the 4th quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 48,179 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,877,000 after buying an additional 16,871 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

OXY traded up $0.39 on Tuesday, reaching $67.39. The company had a trading volume of 5,383,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,733,055. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $63.77 and a 200-day moving average price of $61.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.74 billion, a PE ratio of 17.24 and a beta of 1.64. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a 1 year low of $55.12 and a 1 year high of $71.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last released its quarterly 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. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 20.63% and a net margin of 16.24%. The firm had revenue of $7.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.61 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.31%. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on OXY. Raymond James dropped their target price on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $66.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays began coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $74.00 price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Scotiabank raised Occidental Petroleum from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock 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, five have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $71.94.

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.