Everence Capital Management Inc. Buys Shares of 42,950 Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY)

Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Occidental Petroleum Co. (NYSE:OXY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 42,950 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $2,565,000.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Occidental Petroleum in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. TLW Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in shares of Occidental Petroleum by 86.0% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 519 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Finally, BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Occidental Petroleum during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 88.70% of the company’s stock.

Occidental Petroleum Price Performance

Shares of OXY stock traded down $1.52 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $66.82. 12,434,095 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,844,323. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $62.70 and its 200-day moving average is $61.05. 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 stock has a market cap of $59.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.89 and a beta of 1.64. Occidental Petroleum Co. has a 52 week low of $55.12 and a 52 week high of $71.18.

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.74. Occidental Petroleum had a return on equity of 20.63% and a net margin of 16.24%. The business had revenue of $7.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Occidental Petroleum Co. will post 3.84 EPS for the current year.

Occidental Petroleum Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Occidental Petroleum’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.18. Occidental Petroleum’s dividend payout ratio is 22.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Occidental Petroleum from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. HSBC assumed coverage on Occidental Petroleum in a research note on Monday, April 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank upgraded Occidental Petroleum from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $63.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Mizuho upped their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $69.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price target on Occidental Petroleum from $70.00 to $68.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.06.

Occidental Petroleum Company 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.