Shares of Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) are trading slightly lower in pre-market on Monday, following Warren Buffett's comments over the weekend signaling Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKa) (NYSE:BRKb) is not planning to seek a controlling stake in the company.
"We will not be making any offer for control of Occidental" - said the 'Oracle of Omaha' during Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder meeting, putting an end to the growing speculations that his conglomerate was preparing a bid for the controlling stake in the oil giant.
"We love the shares we have," added the famed investor, noting "we may or may not own more in the future but we certainly have warrants on a very substantial amount of stock... and I’m glad we have them."
Buffett also praised the company's leadership, and particularly its CEO Vicki Hollub, who he called "an extraordinary manager," adding "we love having Vicki run it."
Berkshire Hathaway currently owns over 23% stake in Occidental via a combination of preferred shares and warrants. Last August, it also received regulatory approval to boost its stake in the oil giant up to 50%, leading to speculations Warren Buffett was mulling a bid for the entire company.
Shares of OXY are trading nearly 1% lower following the news.