Significantly high institutional ownership implies Occidental Petroleum's stock price is sensitive to their trading actions
A total of 5 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership
Analyst forecasts along with ownership data serve to give a strong idea about prospects for a business
A look at the shareholders of Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) can tell us which group is most powerful. We can see that institutions own the lion's share in the company with 51% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).
And so it follows that institutional investors was the group most impacted after the company's market cap fell to US$46b last week after a 4.6% drop in the share price. This set of investors may especially be concerned about the current loss, which adds to a one-year loss of 13% for shareholders. Also referred to as "smart money", institutions have a lot of sway over how a stock's price moves. As a result, if the downtrend continues, institutions may face pressures to sell Occidental Petroleum, which might have negative implications on individual investors.
In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Occidental Petroleum.
What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Occidental Petroleum?
Institutional investors commonly compare their own returns to the returns of a commonly followed index. So they generally do consider buying larger companies that are included in the relevant benchmark index.
We can see that Occidental Petroleum does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. If multiple institutions change their view on a stock at the same time, you could see the share price drop fast. It's therefore worth looking at Occidental Petroleum's earnings history below. Of course, the future is what really matters.
NYSE:OXY Earnings and Revenue Growth January 28th 2025
Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. Occidental Petroleum is not owned by hedge funds. The company's largest shareholder is Berkshire Hathaway Inc., with ownership of 28%. With 8.3% and 6.1% of the shares outstanding respectively, Dodge & Cox and The Vanguard Group, Inc. are the second and third largest shareholders.
On looking further, we found that 51% of the shares are owned by the top 5 shareholders. In other words, these shareholders have a meaningful say in the decisions of the company.
Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. There are a reasonable number of analysts covering the stock, so it might be useful to find out their aggregate view on the future.
Insider Ownership Of Occidental Petroleum
The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves.
I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.
Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Occidental Petroleum Corporation. It is a very large company, so it would be surprising to see insiders own a large proportion of the company. Though their holding amounts to less than 1%, we can see that board members collectively own US$120m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.
General Public Ownership
The general public-- including retail investors -- own 21% stake in the company, and hence can't easily be ignored. This size of ownership, while considerable, may not be enough to change company policy if the decision is not in sync with other large shareholders.
Public Company Ownership
We can see that public companies hold 28% of the Occidental Petroleum shares on issue. This may be a strategic interest and the two companies may have related business interests. It could be that they have de-merged. This holding is probably worth investigating further.
Next Steps:
I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Occidental Petroleum , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.
NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.
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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
