Waverly Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP – Free Report) by 31.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 227,828 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after selling 105,960 shares during the quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC’s holdings in BP were worth $8,418,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its holdings in shares of BP by 48.8% in the 2nd quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,830,923 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $104,603,000 after acquiring an additional 928,617 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in shares of BP by 290.2% during the 2nd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,049,151 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $75,716,000 after purchasing an additional 1,524,048 shares during the last quarter. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT bought a new stake in BP during the fourth quarter valued at about $67,890,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in BP by 15.8% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,410,714 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $52,307,000 after purchasing an additional 192,211 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kahn Brothers Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of BP during the second quarter valued at about $23,094,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.01% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on BP shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of BP from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Mizuho set a $53.00 price target on shares of BP in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of BP in a research report on Friday, September 4th. Freedom Capital upgraded BP from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on BP from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 3rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.59.
BP Stock Performance
Shares of BP stock opened at $45.68 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $42.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $119.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.28, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. BP p.l.c. has a 52 week low of $32.72 and a 52 week high of $48.27.
BP (NYSE:BP – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $69.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.89 billion. BP had a net margin of 2.49% and a return on equity of 16.63%. BP’s revenue for the quarter was up 106.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.90 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that BP p.l.c. will post 6.45 EPS for the current year.
BP Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th will be given a $0.5196 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This is a positive change from BP’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. BP’s payout ratio is currently 100.49%.
BP News Summary
Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Multiple Zacks Strong Buy designations: BP was added to Zacks’ #1 Strong Buy lists for value, growth, momentum and income investors. These rankings reflect favorable earnings estimates, estimate revisions and trading momentum, potentially attracting additional buying interest. New Strong Buy Stocks for September 9th
- Positive Sentiment: Attractive valuation and oil exposure: Analysts highlighted BP as a potentially compelling way to benefit from high oil prices without paying a premium valuation. The company’s value profile and income potential are supporting the bullish case. Why BP Is One of the Best Oil Stocks to Buy Right Now
- Positive Sentiment: Potential asset-sale interest: BP’s North Sea operations reportedly attracted interest from several potential buyers. A sale could generate cash and support portfolio streamlining, though no transaction has been confirmed. BP North Sea Operations Garner Interest From Potential Buyers
- Positive Sentiment: Exploration growth: BP and Socar received approval to advance drilling activity in Uzbekistan, providing a potential avenue for future production and resource expansion. BP and Socar get green light for Uzbekistan drilling push
- Neutral Sentiment: Shell agreed to acquire a 30% interest in BP-operated Conifer, a deepwater Gulf of Mexico prospect. The deal validates the asset’s potential and may share development risk, but commentary also suggests Shell has stronger cash flow than BP. Could Shell’s Superior Cash Flow Make It a Better Bet Than BP?
- Negative Sentiment: Whiting refinery labor dispute: A lockout at BP’s Whiting refinery is approaching six months, highlighting ongoing labor and operational risks that could weigh on refining performance and investor confidence. BP Whiting refinery lockout nears 6 months
BP Company Profile
BP p.l.c. is a global integrated energy company headquartered in London, England. Its operations span the energy value chain, including exploration and production of oil and natural gas, refining, fuel marketing, energy trading and transportation. BP also produces and markets lubricants through its Castrol brand and supplies fuels through retail networks operating under brands such as BP, Aral and ampm.
The company has operations and business relationships across multiple regions, including the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific.
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