Skylands Capital LLC Purchases 27,175 Shares of Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

Skylands Capital LLC grew its position in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) by 23.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 145,084 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 27,175 shares during the period. Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were worth $7,169,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of OXY. H&H International Investment LLC raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 497.7% in the 3rd quarter. H&H International Investment LLC now owns 9,223,700 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $475,389,000 after purchasing an additional 7,680,598 shares during the last quarter. Scharf Investments LLC raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 48.7% in the 4th quarter. Scharf Investments LLC now owns 2,461,033 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $121,600,000 after purchasing an additional 805,525 shares during the last quarter. Anson Funds Management LP raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 3,645.8% in the 3rd quarter. Anson Funds Management LP now owns 765,486 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $39,453,000 after purchasing an additional 745,050 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Occidental Petroleum by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,846,890 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $710,886,000 after purchasing an additional 444,850 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund bought a new position in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $18,554,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Occidental Petroleum

In related news, major shareholder Berkshire Hathaway Inc bought 763,017 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $46.82 per share, with a total value of $35,724,455.94. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 264,941,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,404,557,799.42. This trade represents a 0.29 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 6,854,394 shares of company stock valued at $315,101,532. Insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on OXY shares. Roth Capital set a $54.00 target price on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Stephens reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $71.00 price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Occidental Petroleum from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Occidental Petroleum from $72.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.55.

Occidental Petroleum Stock Performance

Shares of OXY stock opened at $50.42 on Monday. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a 12 month low of $45.17 and a 12 month high of $71.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.66 and a beta of 1.55. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $49.20 and its 200 day moving average is $51.34.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.67 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $6.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.14 billion. Occidental Petroleum had a net margin of 11.37% and a return on equity of 16.33%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.90%. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.34%.

Occidental Petroleum Profile

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.