Occidental Petroleum (OXY) reported earnings for the third quarter and the market focused on the lower earnings. But housecleaning was the first priority after an acquisition as management focuses on optimizing operations of the combined company. This was a huge acquisition by any measure. Therefore, management should be given at least one year to organize the combined company appropriately.
Mr. Market has other ideas, though.
Source: Seeking Alpha Website January 5, 2020.
The market has soured on oil and gas in general. Politicians have made moves to keep the price of oil down.