Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY): History, Ownership, Mission, How It Works & Makes Money

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) is a US energy giant, but can its dual focus on maximizing Permian Basin output and pioneering carbon capture technology defintely sustain its valuation premium in a volatile market?

The company's operational execution is clear, delivering a record Permian production of 800 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (Mboe/d) in the third quarter of 2025, which helped drive a net income of $661 million for the quarter. This core strength is now paired with a significant pivot toward low-carbon solutions, like Direct Air Capture (DAC) projects, positioning them not just as an oil producer but as a leader in the emerging carbon management industry.

So, how exactly does a business that generated $26.60 billion in trailing twelve-month (TTM) revenue actually work, and what does its complex ownership structure mean for your investment strategy?

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) History

You're looking for the foundational story of Occidental Petroleum Corporation, or OXY, and how it evolved into the energy giant it is today. The quick takeaway is that OXY started small in California in the 1920s, but it was the arrival of Dr. Armand Hammer in the late 1950s that truly transformed it, pivoting the company to aggressive international expansion and diversification, a strategy that continues today with its focus on the Permian Basin and carbon management.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Founding Timeline

Year established

The company was established in 1920.

Original location

Occidental Petroleum Corporation was founded in Los Angeles, California, initially focusing on domestic oil exploration in the burgeoning California oil fields.

Founding team members

While the company was founded in 1920, the pivotal figure who reshaped its trajectory was Dr. Armand Hammer, who acquired a controlling stake and became President and CEO in 1957. His leadership is what truly defined the company's modern era.

Initial capital/funding

Specific initial capital figures are not publicly detailed, but the early funding for the small oil exploration venture came from a mix of private investors and local capital, a common structure for oil ventures in California at the time.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Evolution Milestones

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Transformative Moments

The company's history is a series of bold, transformative decisions, often involving massive debt to secure high-value assets. This is defintely not a slow-and-steady story.

• The Hammer Era's International Leap: Dr. Armand Hammer's leadership in the 1960s and 1970s was a major pivot. The Libyan oil discovery in 1966 was the first big win, transforming OXY from a domestic California driller into a global entity overnight.
• Diversification and Divestiture: OXY spent decades diversifying into chemicals (Occidental Chemical Corporation, or OxyChem) and even meat processing (IBP, Inc.). The recent sale of OxyChem in October 2025 for $9.7 billion marks a clear, strategic reversal, refocusing the company on its core upstream (exploration and production) assets, especially in the Permian.
• The Permian Basin Consolidation: The 2019 Anadarko acquisition and the 2024 CrownRock acquisition, totaling nearly $70 billion, cemented OXY's status as a Permian Basin powerhouse. This region is now the engine of the company, driving its operational performance. For example, in the third quarter of 2025, total company average production exceeded the high end of guidance with 1,465 Mboed (thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day).
• The Carbon Management Bet: OXY is now making a significant, long-term bet on carbon capture and storage (CCS) through its subsidiary 1PointFive. This is a massive capital commitment that positions OXY as a leader in the emerging low-carbon energy sector, aiming to capture 25 million tons of CO2 annually by 2035. This is a strategic move to future-proof the business.

Here's the quick math on the deleveraging: The company repaid $1.3 billion of debt during the third quarter of 2025 alone, reducing the principal debt balance to $20.8 billion. That's a clear action point following the Anadarko debt load. You can dive deeper into the current ownership structure and market positioning by Exploring Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Ownership Structure

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) is defintely a publicly traded company, but its ownership is heavily concentrated in the hands of institutional giants, which means a few powerful players largely influence the company's strategic direction.

This structure, where institutions own the vast majority of shares, is common for large-cap energy companies, but the sheer size of the largest single shareholder, Berkshire Hathaway Inc., makes Occidental Petroleum Corporation's governance unique.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Current Status

Occidental Petroleum Corporation is a public company whose shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol OXY. As of November 2025, the company's market capitalization sits at approximately $40.71 billion USD, reflecting its position as a major player in the global energy market. Its stock price was trading around $41.44 per share on November 21, 2025. What this estimate hides is the significant influence that a single, strategic corporate investor can exert, even in a public setting.

You need to know who is really in the driver's seat when analyzing a stock. Breaking Down Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Ownership Breakdown

The company's ownership is dominated by institutional investors, which hold over three-quarters of the outstanding shares. This means that mutual funds, pension funds, and other large firms, including giants like BlackRock, Inc. and Vanguard Group Inc., control the majority of the voting power.

Here's the quick math on who owns the company, based on data as of late 2025:

The single most dominant shareholder is Berkshire Hathaway Inc., which holds a massive stake of approximately 26.89% of the company's shares as of September 30, 2025. This is a strategic, long-term position that gives them substantial influence over major corporate decisions. Other major institutional holders include Vanguard Group Inc. at 9.05% and BlackRock, Inc. at 5.02%. Carl C. Icahn is also a notable insider/individual shareholder, owning about 7.47% of the company.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Leadership

The company is steered by an experienced senior management team, with an average tenure of 3.5 years for the management team as of late 2025. The leadership has been focused on both traditional hydrocarbon exploration and a significant push into carbon capture technologies.

• Vicki Hollub: President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO). She has led the company since 2016 and is a key driver of the company's net-zero carbon ambitions.
• Jack Moore: Independent Chairman of the Board.
• Sunil Mathew: Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). He manages the company's financial strategy, including debt reduction efforts.
• Richard Jackson: Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (COO). He oversees the day-to-day operational execution, including the dominant Permian Basin assets.

Vicki Hollub's total compensation for the 2025 fiscal year was approximately $18.54 million USD, which is above average for her peer group. The leadership team is responsible for integrating major acquisitions, like the CrownRock deal, and managing the company's substantial debt load, which is a critical near-term risk for investors.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Mission and Values

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's core purpose is to deliver essential energy products and superior shareholder returns while simultaneously pioneering the large-scale carbon management technologies needed for a lower-carbon economy. This dual focus defines their cultural DNA, pushing them to take bold, industry-leading action on sustainability while maintaining financial discipline.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Core Purpose

The company's mission and values go beyond just extracting resources; they are a blueprint for being a premier, low-cost producer that is also a leader in carbon innovation. This is a tough balancing act, but it's where the long-term value lies. For example, their commitment to innovation is backed by a major investment in the Stratos Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant in Texas, which is projected to capture 500,000 tons of CO2 annually, with operations expected to start by mid-2025.

Official mission statement

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's mission statement is concise, reflecting a culture of challenging the status quo and embracing calculated risk. They defintely don't shy away from big bets.

• We dare to do what others won't.

This mission drives their strategic decision to invest heavily in carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies, including the $1.1 billion acquisition of Carbon Engineering, positioning them as a pioneer in a potentially multi-trillion-dollar global industry.

Vision statement

The vision statement maps their ambition to their operational advantages-the right assets and the right people. It's about setting an impossible-sounding goal and then using their technical expertise to hit it.

• We will lead the industry by reaching for the impossible, then achieving it.
• We do this by having the right assets in the hands of remarkable people driven by passion to outperform.

This vision directly connects to their financial performance; by Q3 2025, the company had reduced its full-year capital expenditures guidance by $300 million and operating costs guidance by $170 million, demonstrating operational excellence alongside their ambitious carbon goals. You can read more about how these principles guide their strategy here: Mission Statement, Vision, & Core Values of Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY).

Occidental Petroleum Corporation slogan/tagline

While not a traditional advertising slogan, the company uses a clear, action-oriented phrase to focus its low-carbon strategy, which is where their future growth is concentrated.

• Zero In.

This tagline encapsulates their commitment to achieving net-zero emissions from operations and energy use (Scope 1 and 2) before 2040. They are aiming for a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to 2019 levels by the end of the 2025 fiscal year, which is a clear, measurable target. Plus, they showed commitment to shareholders by announcing an approximate 9% dividend increase in early 2025.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) How It Works

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) operates as a vertically-integrated energy and chemical company, primarily generating cash flow from its dominant oil and gas position in the Permian Basin to fund its pioneering Low Carbon Ventures (LCV) growth strategy.

Simply put, OXY uses its high-margin hydrocarbon production-expected to average 1.42 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (Mboed) for the full year 2025-to finance its transition into a leader in carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Product/Service Portfolio

OXY's value delivery is split across three main segments: Oil and Gas, OxyChem (Chemical), and Midstream and Marketing, plus the emerging Low Carbon Ventures segment. The trailing twelve months (TTM) revenue as of mid-2025 shows Oil and Gas is the primary driver, with $22.01 billion, followed by OxyChem at $4.88 billion.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Operational Framework

OXY's operational process is a disciplined, two-part engine: maximizing efficiency in traditional energy while rapidly scaling low-carbon solutions.

• Permian Dominance: The company focuses its capital expenditure-about $6.8 billion of its $7.0-$7.2 billion 2025 capital plan-on its U.S. onshore portfolio, especially the Permian Basin.
• Efficiency Gains: Operational improvements in 2025 have driven a 15% faster drilling time and an 11% reduction in well costs across its unconventional assets, which directly translates to lower finding and development costs.
• Carbon Management Integration: OXY leverages its decades of experience in CO₂ Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) to manage and sequester captured carbon. This is a defintely unique operational loop: CO₂ is captured (or sourced), transported, and then injected into mature oil fields to boost production while permanently storing the gas.
• Low-Carbon Capital: The remaining capital, approximately $450 million in 2025, is dedicated to its Low Carbon Ventures for projects like Stratos and Gulf Coast sequestration hubs, positioning OXY for future revenue streams from carbon credits and low-carbon products.

Here's the quick math: The robust free cash flow, which was still a strong $700 million in Q2 2025 before working capital changes, supports debt reduction-$2.3 billion repaid in 2025-and funds the LCV growth.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Strategic Advantages

OXY's long-term success hinges on a few clear, strategic differentiators that set it apart from both traditional oil majors and pure-play carbon tech firms.

• Premier Permian Acreage: OXY is a leading producer in the Permian Basin, holding a substantial, high-quality resource base that underpins its financial stability and provides a low-cost, short-cycle source of capital.
• CCUS/DAC Technological Leadership: The company is an early-mover and pioneer in commercial-scale Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology, integrating carbon removal into its core business model rather than treating it as a side project.
• Vertical Integration (OxyChem): The Chemical segment provides a counter-cyclical hedge to the volatile oil market. Its steady, non-commodity-linked earnings provide a reliable foundation for cash flow stability.
• CO₂ EOR Expertise: OXY's deep expertise in using CO₂ for Enhanced Oil Recovery gives it an operational advantage in managing large-scale CO₂ infrastructure, which is directly transferable to its Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) business.

This dual strategy-high-return Permian assets funding low-carbon innovation-is the core competitive edge. For a deeper dive into the ownership structure, consider exploring Exploring Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?

Finance: Track the Stratos DAC plant's mid-2025 commercial operation date closely to model the impact of carbon credit sales on Q3 and Q4 2025 earnings.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) How It Makes Money

Occidental Petroleum Corporation makes money primarily by extracting and selling crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas, which is the core of their Oil and Gas segment. They also generate significant revenue from their downstream chemical manufacturing business, OxyChem, which converts these raw materials into essential industrial products like chlorine and caustic soda.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Revenue Breakdown

You need to see where the cash is actually flowing from. For the twelve months ending in mid-2025, Occidental Petroleum Corporation's total segment revenue was approximately $28.1 billion, with the vast majority coming from the upstream business. Here is the breakdown of the gross segment revenue, which is the clearest way to see the contribution of each part of the business before corporate eliminations.

Business Economics

The economics of an exploration and production (E&P) company like Occidental Petroleum Corporation are simple but brutal: they are a price-taker. Their revenue is dictated by global commodity prices, but their profitability is all about cost control and production efficiency. That's the real lever they can pull.

• Price-Volume Sensitivity: The Oil and Gas segment's revenue is directly tied to the realized price of crude oil and natural gas. For the second quarter of 2025, the average worldwide realized crude oil price was approximately $63.76 per barrel, a 10% decrease from the prior quarter, which immediately impacts top-line revenue.
• Cost Discipline: The company is focused on driving down operating expenses. They cut their domestic operating cost guidance for 2025 to $8.65 per barrel of oil equivalent (BOE), which is a key metric for maintaining margin when oil prices are volatile.
• Chemical Buffer: The OxyChem segment acts as a natural hedge. Its revenue, while smaller, is more stable because it's driven by industrial demand for products like caustic soda and PVC, not just the price of a barrel. This provides a crucial, defintely less-volatile cash flow stream.
• Carbon Capture: The company is making strategic investments in Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology, which, while a long-term play, could become a significant new revenue stream through carbon sequestration credits and services, fundamentally changing the business model's risk profile over the next decade.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation's Financial Performance

Through the first half of 2025, Occidental Petroleum Corporation has shown a clear focus on operational efficiency and aggressive debt reduction, even with commodity price headwinds. You need to look at the capital allocation to see the strategy in action.

• Production Strength: The company's full-year 2025 production is projected to average approximately 1.42 million BOE per day, reflecting modest growth and strong operational execution, especially in the Permian Basin.
• Deleveraging is Priority One: Occidental Petroleum Corporation has repaid $3.0 billion of debt year-to-date through the second quarter of 2025, using a combination of organic cash flow and proceeds from asset sales. This is a critical step in strengthening the balance sheet following major acquisitions.
• Capital Spending: The 2025 capital investment plan is projected to be between $7.1 billion and $7.3 billion, which is focused on short-cycle, high-return assets to quickly generate cash flow and support production targets.
• Earnings: Despite lower realized oil prices in Q2, the company reported Q1 2025 net income of $945 million, with Q2 2025 net income at $288 million, highlighting the immediate impact of commodity price swings on quarterly results.

To get a deeper look at the sustainability of these numbers, you should review Breaking Down Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Financial Health: Key Insights for Investors. Finance: Track the Q3 2025 debt repayment figures, as that will be the next clear indicator of their deleveraging progress.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Market Position & Future Outlook

Occidental Petroleum Corporation is strategically transforming its business model, moving from a highly leveraged oil major to a financially disciplined, dual-engine energy company focused on high-margin Permian production and pioneering low-carbon ventures (LCV). This pivot, backed by aggressive debt reduction and a unique early-mover advantage in Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology, positions it for long-term resilience, even as commodity price volatility continues to pressure near-term earnings.

Competitive Landscape

In the U.S. oil and gas exploration and production (E&P) sector, Occidental Petroleum Corporation competes directly with the supermajors and large independent players. While smaller in overall market capitalization than the supermajors, its strategic focus makes it a formidable force in the crucial Permian Basin, where it is expected to be a top three producer after its recent acquisition activity. The table below visualizes the competitive landscape based on relative U.S. crude oil production volume, a key measure of E&P market presence.

Opportunities & Challenges

The company's near-term strategy is a clear trade-off: front-load capital to secure long-term, high-return assets. This is what you're seeing with the focus on the Permian and the Low-Carbon Ventures segment. Here's the quick math on the risks and opportunities as of November 2025.

Industry Position

Occidental Petroleum Corporation is not just a large independent producer; it's a disciplined, high-quality asset holder with a unique energy transition hedge. The CrownRock acquisition solidified its position as a top-tier operator in the Permian Basin, the most critical U.S. oil region. This focus on short-cycle, high-return assets with a breakeven cost of $25-$30/bbl provides a substantial cash flow buffer against market downturns.

• Dominant Permian footprint: Expected to be a top three producer in the basin, driving its Q4 2025 production guidance midpoint of 1.46 million BOE/d.
• Strategic institutional backing: Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway maintains a significant stake, signaling strong long-term confidence in the company's asset quality and management strategy.
• Pioneering carbon management: The $450 million allocated to Low-Carbon Ventures in 2025 positions the company as a leader in industrial-scale carbon removal, a potential new high-margin revenue stream.

The company is effectively running a dual strategy: maximizing returns from the core oil and gas business to pay down debt, and using a fraction of that cash flow to build a new, future-proof business in carbon management. If you want to dive deeper into who is betting on this strategy, you should check out Exploring Occidental Petroleum Corporation (OXY) Investor Profile: Who's Buying and Why?