Occidental Petroleum Corporation ( OXY ) shares are trading lower on Monday, along with other stocks in the oil sector, after Israel reportedly did not damage Iran’s oil sites amid strikes over the weekend.

What To Know: According to BBC, Israel launched airstrikes at Iran in retaliation for the more than 180 missiles fired at Israel earlier this month.

The attacks reportedly began around 2:15 a.m. (22:45 GMT) on Saturday, with Iranian media documenting explosions near Tehran, Iran’s capital. The assault lasted approximately three hours and involved aircraft, jets, and drones, resulting in the deaths of four Iranian soldiers and one civilian.

The Israel Defense Force (IDF) stated that its strikes targeted military sites in various regions. While the attacks impacted Iran’s air defenses, along with its missile, drone production, and launch capabilities, the strikes spared Iran's oil and nuclear facilities.

This comes after U.S. President Joe Biden had urged Israel not to strike Iran’s oil or nuclear infrastructure.

Researchers told Reuters that the strikes might have, “significantly hampered Iran’s ability to mass produce missiles,” as the strikes hit a military complex near Tehran.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had, “severely damaged Iran's defense capability and its ability to produce missiles.”

How To Buy Occidental Petroleum Stock

By now you're likely curious about how to participate in the market for Occidental Petroleum ( OXY ) – be it to purchase shares or even attempt to bet against the company.

Buying shares is typically done through a brokerage account. You can find a list of possible trading platforms here. Many will allow you to buy ‘fractional shares,' which allows you to own portions of stock without buying an entire share. For example, some stock, like Berkshire Hathaway, can cost thousands of dollars to own just one share. However, if you only want to invest a fraction of that, brokerages will allow you to do so.

In the the case of Occidental Petroleum ( OXY ), which is trading at $50.8 as of publishing time, $100 would buy you 1.97 shares of stock.

If you're looking to bet against a company, the process is more complex. You'll need access to an options trading platform, or a broker who will allow you to ‘go short' a share of stock by lending you the shares to sell. The process of shorting a stock can be found at this resource. Otherwise, if your broker allows you to trade options, you can either buy a put option, or sell a call option at a strike price above where shares are currently trading – either way it allows you to profit off of the share price decline.

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OXY Price Action: As of Monday morning, Occidental Petroleum ( OXY ) shares are moving 1.64% lower at $50.74, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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