Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) stock is trading higher on Friday after Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK) increased its stake in the company.

The Details: According to a Form 4 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Berkshire purchased 8,896,890 shares in Occidental at an average price of $45.99.

The purchase costs Berkshire about $409 million in total.

Berkshire completed this purchase in stages, beginning on Dec. 17 and concluding on Dec. 19. The company now holds approximately a 28% stake in Occidental.

How To Buy Occidental Petroleum Shares

Besides going to a brokerage platform to purchase a share – or fractional share – of stock, you can also gain access to shares either by buying an exchange traded fund (ETF) that holds the stock itself, or by allocating yourself to a strategy in your 401(k) that would seek to acquire shares in a mutual fund or other instrument.

For example, in Occidental Petroleum's case, it is in the Energy sector. An ETF will likely hold shares in many liquid and large companies that help track that sector, allowing an investor to gain exposure to the trends within that segment.

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OXY Price Action: At the time of writing, Occidental stock is moving 5.22% higher at $47.70, according to data from Benzinga Pro.

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