Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY)

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) was the target of unusually large options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors purchased 138,539 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 71% compared to the average volume of 80,978 call options.

Occidental Petroleum News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Occidental Petroleum this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research upgraded OXY from “hold” to “strong-buy,” a clear vote that can attract momentum traders and institutional buyers. Zacks upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Price-target lift: American Banking News published a raised price target to $74, which supports upside expectations among investors pricing in stronger forward returns. Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) Price Target Raised to $74.00
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum coverage: recent pieces (Zacks/Yahoo) are highlighting OXY as a momentum buy, reinforcing short-term inflows from trend-following funds. Here’s Why Occidental Petroleum (OXY) is a Great Momentum Stock to Buy
• Positive Sentiment: Macro tailwinds: rising crude prices and rising geopolitical tensions have lifted energy peers and helped OXY trade higher as investors rotate into higher-performing oil names. What’s Going On With Occidental Petroleum Stock Thursday?
• Neutral Sentiment: Leadership transition: CEO Vicki Hollub is retiring and Richard Jackson is named CEO. Management is refocusing on carbon management and balance-sheet transformation (post-OxyChem sale). Strategically positive but introduces short‑term execution and governance uncertainty. Occidental Petroleum CEO Shift Puts Carbon Management And Debt In Focus
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst consensus remains cautious: an American Banking News summary shows an average analyst rating of “Hold,” which can cap near-term upside despite isolated price-target raises and upgrades. Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Analysts

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Occidental Petroleum stock opened at $62.94 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $62.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.09 and a beta of 0.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $53.21 and a 200-day moving average of $46.22. Occidental Petroleum has a 52-week low of $34.78 and a 52-week high of $67.45.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.18 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.02 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 9.14% and a return on equity of 9.89%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.80 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Occidental Petroleum will post 3.58 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.26 per share. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.24. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $1.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Occidental Petroleum’s payout ratio is currently 64.60%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Occidental Petroleum

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in OXY. City Holding Co. increased its stake in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 250.0% in the third quarter. City Holding Co. now owns 700 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in Occidental Petroleum by 68.5% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 750 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Binnacle Investments Inc bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Rossby Financial LCC increased its position in Occidental Petroleum by 155.0% in the 4th quarter. Rossby Financial LCC now owns 765 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the period. 88.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Occidental Petroleum from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $63.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, March 20th. HSBC raised their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $59.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $49.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Occidental Petroleum from $48.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $51.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $58.83.

About Occidental Petroleum

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) is an international energy company engaged primarily in the exploration, production and marketing of oil and natural gas. The company conducts upstream activities to discover and produce hydrocarbons and operates complementary midstream and marketing functions to transport and sell its production. Occidental also owns a chemicals business that manufactures and sells industrial chemicals and related products for a range of end markets.

Occidental’s operations are concentrated in the United States, with a significant presence in the Permian Basin, and it maintains exploration and production activities in several international regions, including parts of the Middle East, Latin America and Africa.