A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Occidental Petroleum (OXY Quick QuoteOXY - Free Report) . Shares have added about 8.2% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.

Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Occidental due for a pullback? Well, first let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the recent drivers for Occidental Petroleum Corporation before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late.

Occidental Tops Q1 Earnings Estimates on Strong Production Volumes

Occidental Petroleum Corporation reported first-quarter 2026 earnings of $1.06 per share, which outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 65 cents by 63.1%. The bottom line also rose 21.8% year over year.
 
GAAP earnings in the reported quarter were $3.13 per share compared with the earnings of 77 cents in the year-ago quarter.

Total Revenues of OXY

Total revenues were $5.11 billion, which missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $5.5 billion by 7%. The top line also lagged 25.3% year over year due to lower contributions from its Oil & Gas segment.

OXY’s Q1 Segmental Details

Oil and Gas revenues totaled $4.98 billion in the reported quarter, down 12.5% year over year.

Midstream & Marketing revenues of $397 million jumped 129.5% year over year.

Production & Sales at OXY

Total production volume was 1,426 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (Mboe/d). The metric surpassed the company’s guided range of 1,385-1,425 Mboe/d.

Total sales volume was 1,428 Mboe/d, up 2.7% from the year-ago period.

OXY’s Realized Prices

Realized prices of crude oil dropped 1.6% year over year to $69.91 per barrel on a worldwide basis. Realized natural gas liquid prices fell 26.8% year over year to $18.99 per barrel globally. Natural gas prices decreased 58.3% year over year to $1.01 per thousand cubic feet.

Highlights of OXY’s Q1 Release

Occidental advanced debt reduction priorities, repaying $7.1 billion of principal debt through May 5, 2026, reducing principal debt to $13.3 billion and progressing toward the $10 billion milestone.

Occidental reported strong first-quarter production due to robust contributions from Permian assets. Gulf of America’s average daily production volumes in the first quarter were 138 Mboe/d, up 14% year over year, which also contributed to the overall strong volumes.

Sequential improvement in the Midstream and Marketing segment’s performance was due to higher crude margins related to the timing impact of crude sales, higher gas margins from transportation capacity optimizations and higher sulfur prices at Al Hosn. 

Total costs and reduction in the first quarter of 2026 were $4.86 billion, up 3.9% from $4.68 billion in the year-ago quarter. Interest and debt expenses increased 39.4% to $432 million from $310 million in the year-ago quarter, a positive impact of the ongoing debt reduction.

Financial Position of OXY

As of March 31, 2026, Occidental had cash and cash equivalents of $3.81 billion compared with $1.97 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025.

Occidental had long-term debt (net of current portion) of $15.25 billion as of March 31, 2026 compared with $20.62 billion as of Dec. 31, 2025. The company retired $15.6 billion in debt in the last 22 months, which lowered annual interest expenses by $830 million.

OXY generated $3.25 billion of operating cash flow in the first three months of 2026 compared with $2.77 billion in the same period of 2025. Total capital expenditure was $1.55 billion in the first three months of 2026 compared with $1.68 billion in the year-ago period.

OXY’s Guidance

For the second quarter of 2026, OXY expects production in the band of 1,390-1,430 Mboe/d. Output from the Permian Resources segment is anticipated at 783-803 Mboe/d. Occidental expects international production volumes for the second quarter of 2026 to be in the range of 205-211 Mboe/d.

Exploration expenses are estimated to be $75 million and interest expenses to be $185 million in the second quarter of 2026. For 2026, OXY plans to bring online 460-510 wells in the Permian region and 150-170 wells in the Rockies region.

Capital expenditure for 2026 is projected to be in the range of $5.5-$5.9 billion.

How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?

Since the earnings release, investors have witnessed a upward trend in fresh estimates.

The consensus estimate has shifted 45.63% due to these changes.

VGM Scores

Currently, Occidental has a poor Growth Score of F, however its Momentum Score is doing a lot better with a B. Following the exact same course, the stock has a grade of B on the value side, putting it in the top 40% for value investors.

Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of C. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.

Outlook

Estimates have been trending upward for the stock, and the magnitude of these revisions looks promising. It comes with little surprise Occidental has a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). We expect an above average return from the stock in the next few months.

Performance of an Industry Player

Occidental belongs to the Zacks Oil and Gas - Integrated - United States industry. Another stock from the same industry, Antero Midstream Corporation (AM Quick QuoteAM - Free Report) , has gained 0.5% over the past month. More than a month has passed since the company reported results for the quarter ended March 2026.

Antero Midstream reported revenues of $314.21 million in the last reported quarter, representing a year-over-year change of +7.9%. EPS of $0.25 for the same period compares with $0.25 a year ago.

For the current quarter, Antero Midstream is expected to post earnings of $0.28 per share, indicating a change of +7.7% from the year-ago quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate has changed -2.8% over the last 30 days.

The overall direction and magnitude of estimate revisions translate into a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) for Antero Midstream. Also, the stock has a VGM Score of D.