Keep an eye on oversold Occidental Petroleum (OXY).
The Warren Buffett-loved company missed non-GAAP EPS by 22 cents. EPS of $1.61 on sales of $8.3 billion, was below expectations for $1.83 on sales of $8.7 billion.
However, there’s still a lot to like about the downed stock. For one, there’s speculation Warren Buffett could add more to his stake – even though OXY has pulled back substantially from his entry price. Two, the company just announced a new $3 billion share buyback program and increased its dividend by 38% to 18 cents a share.
We also have to consider that Berkshire Hathaway increased its stake in the oil and gas company to 28.0%. In a 13G filing with the US SEC, Berkshire said it owned 278.21 million shares of Occidental Petroleum, or 28.0% of the shares outstanding as of Dec. 31, which is about 83.86 million shares more than it owned at the end of the third quarter, as noted by MarketWatch.
Trading at $59.20, the OXY stock could take off again if Buffett adds to his stake again.
