Occidental Petroleum Corp. (NYSE:OXY)

The financial data over the years reveals notable fluctuations in both net sales and net income attributable to the company.

Net Sales

Net sales exhibited an overall upward trend in the earlier years, peaking in 2008 at 24,217 million USD. This surge was followed by a sharp decline in 2009 to 15,403 million USD. Subsequently, from 2010 through 2013, net sales showed a recovery and moderate growth, ranging between approximately 19,000 and 24,000 million USD. A significant drop occurred in 2015 and 2016, reaching lows around 10,000 to 12,000 million USD. After 2016, net sales rebounded steadily, surpassing 25,000 million USD by 2021 and reaching a peak of 36,634 million USD in 2022. The most recent year shows a slight decline to 26,725 million USD in 2024.

Net Income (Loss) Attributable to Occidental

The net income demonstrated considerable volatility over the examined period. Early years from 2005 to 2008 showed strong profitability, with net income increasing to a peak of 6,857 million USD in 2008. There was a sharp drop in 2009, although profitability remained positive. The period between 2014 to 2016 was characterized by heavy losses, notably in 2015 and 2016, with net income losses of -7,829 million USD and -574 million USD, respectively. A recovery phase began in 2017, with net income returning to positive territory and peaking at 4,131 million USD in 2018. The year 2020 saw another significant loss of -14,831 million USD, likely reflecting adverse economic or market conditions. However, the company rebounded with positive net income in 2021 and a strong increase to 13,304 million USD in 2022. A decline is again noted in 2023 and projections for 2024, with net income falling to 3,056 million USD.

Overall, the data reflects a cyclical pattern of revenue and profitability influenced by market conditions, commodity prices, and possibly company-specific events. Periods of rapid growth and profitability were often followed by sharp downturns, indicating exposure to external factors affecting the energy sector. The recovery phases show the company’s ability to regain profitability, albeit with varying degrees of success. The large swings in net income suggest earnings volatility, which may require careful monitoring for risk management and strategic planning purposes.

The current assets exhibit a fluctuating trend over the reported years. Starting at 6,574 million US dollars in 2005, there was a slight decline in 2006, followed by a significant increase in 2007. The values then oscillate moderately until 2014, after which a sharp increase is observed in 2019, peaking at 18,681 million US dollars. Following this peak, current assets drop substantially in 2020 before stabilizing around the 8,000 to 9,000 million range through 2024 with a modest upward trend towards the end of the period.

Total assets demonstrate a general upward trajectory from 2005 through 2013, starting at 26,108 million US dollars and reaching a peak of approximately 69,443 million in 2013. However, a noticeable decline occurs between 2013 and 2015, with total assets falling to 43,437 million in 2015. This decline stabilizes and is followed by relatively steady values hovering around the 42,000 to 44,000 million range up to 2018. A dramatic surge is evident in 2019, when total assets jump sharply to 109,330 million, after which there is a decline through 2022, stabilizing somewhat around the 72,000 to 75,000 million mark in the following years, and rising again in 2024 to 85,445 million.

Overall, the data indicates significant volatility in both current and total assets, with notable peaks around 2013 and 2019, followed by periods of decline and relative stabilization. The sharp increases observed at these points may suggest major asset acquisitions, revaluations, or other corporate actions influencing the asset base substantially. The decrease following these peaks could reflect asset disposals, write-downs, or operational changes impacting the balance sheet composition.

Current Liabilities

The current liabilities exhibit a generally increasing trend over the analyzed period, starting at $4,280 million at the end of 2005 and rising to $9,521 million by the end of 2024. Notable fluctuations include a peak in 2019 at $14,949 million, followed by a significant reduction in 2020 to $8,223 million. Subsequent years show a moderate increase, indicating variability likely due to operational or financing activities.

Long-term Debt, Including Current Maturities

The long-term debt displays considerable volatility. Beginning at $2,919 million in 2005, debt levels decreased to a low of $1,788 million in 2007 before rising substantially to $10,317 million by 2018. A major spike occurs in 2019, with debt peaking at $38,588 million, then decreasing sharply to about $19,835 million by 2022. The final two years show a slight upward trend, finishing at $26,116 million in 2024. This pattern suggests episodes of significant borrowing, possibly related to acquisitions, capital expenditures, or refinancing actions, followed by partial deleveraging.

Stockholders’ Equity

Stockholders’ equity demonstrates a prominent upward trend from $15,032 million in 2005 to $43,126 million in 2013. However, a decline is observed from 2013 to 2016, dropping to $21,497 million. After stabilizing around that level through 2018, equity increases again, reaching $34,159 million by 2024. The fluctuations may reflect changes in retained earnings, share repurchases, dividends, or asset revaluations, with the dip post-2013 suggesting either losses, write-downs, or increased shareholder distributions before recovery in recent years.

The analysis of the cash flow activities from 2005 through 2024 reveals distinct trends in operating, investing, and financing activities over time.

Net cash provided by operating activities

Operating cash flow generally demonstrates an upward trajectory, increasing from $5,337 million in 2005 to a peak of $16,810 million in 2022. There are fluctuations observed, with notable reductions in 2015 and 2016 dropping to $3,254 million and $2,519 million respectively, possibly indicating operational challenges during that period. Following this dip, there is a recovery trend leading to subsequent growth. The flow then slightly declines in 2023 and 2024 but remains at a relatively high level compared to the initial years.

Net cash used by investing activities

Investing cash flows consistently display negative values, reflecting ongoing investment outlays. The magnitude of investing cash outflows increased significantly during certain years such as 2011 and 2012, with outflows exceeding $12 billion, indicative of substantial capital expenditures or acquisitions. In 2019, there is a striking surge in outflows to nearly $29 billion, which may suggest a major investment event. Despite some fluctuations, the outflows remain substantial throughout the period, with a notable peak again in 2024 reaching nearly $14.6 billion.

Net cash provided (used) by financing activities

Financing activities exhibit pronounced volatility. Early years predominantly show negative cash flows, implying repayments or reductions in financing. In 2010, a positive cash inflow of $1,083 million indicates new financing. The period from 2011 to 2014 continues to reflect variability, mostly negative, until 2015, when financing activities surged positively to $14,484 million, possibly related to debt issuance or equity financing. A major peak occurs in 2019 with an extraordinary inflow of $22,196 million, corresponding with the large investing outflow that year, indicating financing to support investments. Subsequently, financing cash flows revert to negative territory through 2022 before again moving positive in 2024.

Overall, the operational cash flows sustain a generally positive and growing trend, supporting investing and financing fluctuations. The company demonstrates periods of heavy investing activity financed by significant fluctuations in financing cash flows, consistent with strategic investment cycles. The sharp spikes in financing and investing flows during 2019 highlight a particularly active year in capital deployment and funding. Operating cash flow remains the primary source of liquidity despite notable variability in the other two cash flow categories.

The earnings per share (EPS), both basic and diluted, exhibit significant fluctuations over the analyzed period. Initially, from 2005 to 2008, there is a general increase in EPS, reaching a peak of 8.39 US$ basic EPS in 2008. This is followed by a sharp decline in 2009, coinciding with the global economic downturn, where EPS dropped to 3.59 US$.

From 2010 through 2014, EPS shows some recovery and volatility, with values peaking again at 8.32 US$ basic EPS in 2011 but then declining steeply in 2014 to 0.79 US$. A significant downturn occurs in 2015 and 2016, evidenced by large negative EPS values (basic EPS of -10.23 and -0.75 US$ respectively), indicating substantial net losses during these years.

The years 2017 to 2019 demonstrate a period of gradual recovery, with EPS rising from positive lows to 5.4 US$ in 2018, followed by a sharp decline in 2019 to -1.22 US$. The year 2020 presents another notable loss year, with basic EPS falling dramatically to -17.06 US$, likely due to extraordinary market conditions or company-specific impacts. Subsequently, EPS recovers strongly in 2021 and 2022, reaching 13.41 and 4.22 US$ respectively, before experiencing a moderate decline in 2023 and 2024, with basic EPS values of 4.22 and 2.59 US$.

The dividend per share shows a contrasting trend relative to EPS. From 2005 to 2014, dividends per share steadily increase from 0.65 US$ to 2.88 US$, reflecting a consistent payout policy aligned with the earlier period of earnings growth. Dividends continue to rise slightly and stabilize around the 3.00 US$ mark through 2017 to 2019 despite fluctuations in earnings.

However, a substantial reduction in dividends occurs starting in 2020, dropping to 0.82 US$ in that year and hitting a low of 0.04 US$ in 2021, corresponding with the severe drop in EPS. Dividends then begin to recover from 2022 onwards, rising to 0.52 US$ and 0.72 US$ in subsequent years, with a forecasted increase to 0.88 US$ in 2024. This pattern suggests a conservative dividend policy in response to earnings volatility and adverse financial performance in recent years.

Summary of trends

EPS demonstrates cyclical behavior with periods of growth followed by sharp declines and recoveries, influenced by industry and economic factors.

There are significant loss periods notably in 2015-2016 and 2020, indicating financial stress or exceptional circumstances.

Dividends show a generally stable to increasing trend through 2019, with a pause and reduction corresponding to the earnings decline in 2020-2021.

Recent years indicate a recovery phase in both earnings and dividends, though not yet reaching former peak levels.