Occidental Petroleum (OXY) rose 1.83% to $42.79 in the afternoon trade on Friday, marking the seventh consecutive session of gains. The stock has moved higher through the past week, including a 2.51% rise on November 7 and a 1.38% increase on November 6.
The Texas-based oil & gas firm posted mixed third-quarter results earlier this week, with profit coming in better than expected while revenue lagged slightly. The company said it plans to keep production steady next year and lower spending, and noted softer performance in its midstream and marketing business. Occidental has also been in focus after agreeing to sell its OxyChem unit to Berkshire Hathaway for $9.7B, a move aimed at cutting debt and improving cash flow.
An analyst said Occidental has room for long-term upside as the company cuts costs, improves breakeven levels and sees new potential in the Barnett Shale. The analyst said the chemicals sale should help lower debt and support the company’s plans. Adding to this, the analyst wrote, “This was probably one of the better operational quarters reported.”
Looking at Seeking Alpha’s Quant Rating, it has a “hold” recommendation, scoring 2.96 out of 5. The company earned an A+ in profitability, while a D+ in valuation and growth, a D in momentum and C- in revisions, dragged the overall rating.
While Seeking Alpha analysts are bullish, rating the stock Buy.
On Wall Street, analysts also lean cautious. OXY is rated “Hold”, with seven out of 25 analysts rating the stock Buy or higher, 15 recommending a Hold, while three analysts have a Sell recommendation.
Last month, ScotiaBank upgraded Occidental to Buy from Hold, lifting the price target to $55 from $48. Said, the proposed $9.7 billion OxyChem sale would speed up debt retirement and pull forward share buybacks, while still supporting the dividend.
Recently, OXY has declared a $0.24 per-share quarterly dividend, payable on January 15 to shareholders of record on December 10.
Year to date, the stock is down -13.8%.