Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $208,000 Position in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

Sentry Investment Management LLC lessened its position in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,477 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 373 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $208,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 24.1% in the third quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,021,929 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $779,983,000 after purchasing an additional 2,334,651 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 5,995,258 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $357,977,000 after purchasing an additional 1,088,052 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 2.4% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,035,799 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $285,732,000 after purchasing an additional 118,928 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum by 2.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,665,494 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $302,697,000 after purchasing an additional 125,927 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $267,173,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of OXY stock opened at $66.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $59.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.09 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $62.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.06. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a one year low of $55.12 and a one year high of $71.18.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74. The firm had revenue of $7.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.93 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 16.24% and a return on equity of 20.63%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.61 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.81 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This is a boost from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.51%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on OXY shares. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $77.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. HSBC assumed coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Monday, April 8th. They set a “hold” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $73.00 price objective for the company. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.