Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) stock is trading higher on Wednesday following a combination of a major Wall Street analyst upgrade and a sharp increase in global crude oil prices driven by escalating geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
Nasdaq futures are down 1.32% while S&P 500 futures have shed 0.89%.
On Wednesday, Evercore ISI Group upgraded Occidental Petroleum from Underperform to Outperform. Alongside the upgrade, Evercore raised the company’s price forecast from $58 to $65 per share, driving positive trader sentiment during early market hours.
Crude Oil Prices Spike On Geopolitical Escalation
The upgrade coincided with a significant move in energy commodities. Brent crude oil prices surged 6% to $78.50 a barrel on Wednesday, according to Trading Economics.
The price action followed U.S. military actions late Tuesday. According to a statement from CENTCOM, “U.S. Central Command forces have begun launching a series of powerful strikes against Iran to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway.”
U.S.-Iran Peace Agreement Collapses
The renewed military conflict has placed the interim U.S.-Iran peace agreement at risk.
Speaking in Ankara ahead of a NATO summit, President Donald Trump stated that the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran to end the conflict was “over.”
Economists Warn Of Energy Market Turmoil
The breakdown of the ceasefire has heightened broader market anxieties. In a post on X on Tuesday, University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers noted, “Trouble in Iran = Turmoil in global energy markets = Expect higher gas prices to follow.”
OXY’s Key Technical Levels To Watch
At $52.88, OXY is trading 1.6% above its 20-day SMA ($52.38), but it remains 4.5% below its 50-day SMA ($55.70) and 5% below its 100-day SMA ($56). The stock is still 7.7% above its 200-day SMA ($49.39), so the longer-term uptrend line hasn’t broken even as the last few months have been choppy. RSI is the cleaner momentum read right now: at 45.33.
The moving-average structure is mixed: the 20-day SMA is below the 50-day SMA (a bearish near-term alignment), but the 50-day SMA is still above the 200-day SMA, reflecting the golden cross that occurred in February.
- Key Resistance: $61 — a round-number area that sits above the 50-day and 100-day averages.
- Key Support: $52.50 — a nearby pivot area close to the 20-day SMA.
OXY Price Action: Occidental Petroleum shares were up 2.92% at $53.19 during premarket trading on Wednesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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