Jim Cramer’s 19 Stock Q1 Recap: S&P 500 Winners vs. Nasdaq 100’s Worst Performers

8. Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY)

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) is among the stocks in focus as Jim Cramer reviewed the S&P 500’s top performers and the Nasdaq 100’s biggest laggards for the first quarter. Cramer highlighted a mixed forecast for the stock depending on the Iran conflict, as he commented:

Next up, I was a little surprised that with crude oil up more than 70% year to date, there were only three oil plays among the S&P’s top 10 performers, APA, Texas Pacific Land, which you know we’ve liked a lot, and Occidental Petroleum, which frankly we haven’t liked at all… How about OXY? Occidental Petroleum’s up 58%. Ever since OXY, as it’s known, acquired Anadarko nearly seven years ago, it became the higher risk way to play the price of crude. People do that. Instead of buying a crude index, they buy Occidental. When oil goes higher, this stock rallies hard, but when oil comes down, the stock gets pulverized. Basically, OXY’s a big loser if peace breaks out and a big winner if Iranians insist on keeping the Strait closed.

Occidental Petroleum Corporation (NYSE:OXY) explores for and produces oil, natural gas, and liquid condensates and handles their marketing, processing, and transportation.