Occidental Petroleum "outperform," target price raised

26.04.07 - Credit Suisse

NEW YORK, April 26 (newratings.com) - Analyst J Wolff of Credit Suisse maintains his "outperform" rating on Occidental Petroleum (OXY), while reducing his estimates for the company. The target price has been raised from $52 to $55.

In a research note published this morning, the analyst mentions that the company has reported its 1Q EPS ahead of the estimates and the consensus, driven by higher-than-anticipated government-paid and other revenues, increased share buybacks and an improved oil mix. The EPS estimate for 2007 has been reduced from $4.68 to $4.62 to reflect higher costs, increased tax rate guidance for 2Q and higher exploration expenses.