Grimes & Company Inc. Increases Its Investment in Occidental Petroleum Co.

Grimes & Company Inc. has recently increased its investment in Occidental Petroleum Company (NYSE:OXY) by 7.7% during the third quarter, as indicated in their latest 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm now owns 4,133 shares of this oil and gas company after acquiring an additional 296 shares in the said quarter. By the close of this reporting period, Grimes & Company Inc.'s holdings in Occidental Petroleum were valued at approximately $213,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made adjustments to their positions in Occidental Petroleum recently. For instance, CapWealth Advisors LLC raised its stake by 2.7% in the first quarter and now holds 6,105 shares worth about $397,000, following the purchase of 162 additional shares. Similarly, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings by 2.0%, bringing its total to 8,503 shares valued at $553,000 after acquiring an extra 164 shares. Earnest Partners LLC, another institutional investor, grew its position by 2.6%, and now owns 6,850 shares worth around $445,000 after purchasing an additional 173 shares. Further, Proficio Capital Partners LLC expanded its holdings by 0.8% during the same period, totaling 20,911 shares with a value of $1,359,000 after acquiring an extra 175 shares. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI also incremented its stake by 2.0%, now owning 9,088 shares valued at $573,000 after purchasing another 175 shares. In total, institutional investors and hedge funds currently own about 88.70% of Occidental Petroleum's stock.

Insider Selling Developments

In related news, a significant shareholder, Petroleum Corp/De/Occidental, recently sold 19,500,000 shares of Occidental Petroleum on August 14th. This stock was sold at an average price of $35.75, amounting to a substantial transaction of approximately $697,125,000. Following this sale, the insider retained ownership of 165,681,578 shares valued at about $5,923,116,413. This transaction reflected no change in the percentage of ownership, as disclosed in a filing with the SEC. Notably, corporate insiders own about 0.31% of the company’s shares.

Analyst Ratings and Price Targets

Market analysts have recently provided updates regarding their outlook on Occidental Petroleum. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on the stock with an “outperform” rating and a price target of $81.00. On the other hand, BMO Capital Markets revised its price target down from $70.00 to $65.00, maintaining a “market perform” rating. Mizuho also lowered its price objective from $76.00 to $72.00, assigning a “neutral” rating for the company. Additionally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a “neutral” rating with a target price of $55.00. Meanwhile, Barclays dropped its price target from $67.00 to $58.00 and issued an “equal weight” rating. Overall, analysts have given two sell ratings, eleven hold ratings, five buy ratings, and one strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Occidental Petroleum has achieved a consensus rating of “Hold” with an average price target of $65.72.

Current Market Performance

As of recent trading on Friday, shares of NYSE:OXY opened at $51.57. The company has a fifty-day moving average of $53.59 and a 200-day moving average of $59.40, with a market capitalization of $46.70 billion, and a PE ratio of 12.70. Occidental Petroleum also has a beta of 1.57, a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.75, and a current ratio of 1.04. In the last twelve months, the stock’s price has fluctuated, reaching a low of $49.75 and a high of $71.18.

In its latest earnings report released on August 7, Occidental Petroleum reported earnings of $1.03 per share, exceeding analysts' predictions of $0.77 by $0.26. The company had a net profit margin of 16.62% and a return on equity of 17.91%. During this quarter, its revenue totaled $6.88 billion, slightly missing the estimates of $6.93 billion. This marks a 2.2% increase in revenue compared to the same quarter last year, where the company reported earnings of $0.68 per share. Analysts anticipate that Occidental Petroleum will report earnings of $3.31 per share for the current fiscal year.

Company Overview

Occidental Petroleum Corporation, through its subsidiaries, is involved in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and gas resources in various regions, including the United States, Middle East, and North Africa. The company operates under three segments: Oil and Gas, Chemical, and Midstream and Marketing. Its Oil and Gas segment focuses on exploring, developing, and producing oil, condensate, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas.

Grimes, Investment, Occidental