Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Takes Position in BP p.l.c. $BP

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new position in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 598,635 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock, valued at approximately $28,136,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sound Shore Management Inc. CT purchased a new stake in shares of BP during the 4th quarter valued at $67,890,000. New York State Common Retirement Fund purchased a new position in shares of BP in the 4th quarter worth about $17,768,000. Sagefield Capital LP grew its position in BP by 125.2% during the fourth quarter. Sagefield Capital LP now owns 493,556 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $17,141,000 after buying an additional 274,381 shares during the period. Milford Funds Ltd. purchased a new stake in BP during the fourth quarter worth about $8,335,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in BP by 20.7% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 432,646 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $20,334,000 after acquiring an additional 74,243 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.01% of the company’s stock.

BP Stock Down 0.2%

BP opened at $43.85 on Friday. BP p.l.c. has a 12 month low of $31.58 and a 12 month high of $48.27. The company has a market cap of $114.84 billion, a PE ratio of 36.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.17. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.28 and a 200 day moving average of $41.34.

BP (NYSE:BP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.24. The business had revenue of $52.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $48.50 billion. BP had a net margin of 1.62% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that BP p.l.c. will post 5.6 EPS for the current year.

BP Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $0.4992 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 15th. BP’s payout ratio is presently 164.17%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Argus raised shares of BP from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $50.00 target price for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. UBS Group upgraded BP from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised BP from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on BP from $39.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of BP in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have given a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $46.59.

Key Stories Impacting BP

Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BP is reportedly in advanced talks to sell its Lightsource solar business to a Kuwait-backed group, which could raise cash and sharpen the company’s focus on higher-return core energy assets. BP nears deal to sell solar business to Kuwait-backed consortium, FT reports
• Positive Sentiment: The sale would likely reduce BP’s exposure to a less strategic renewables segment and could support investor confidence in management’s capital-allocation discipline. BP ‘finds buyer’ for its last renewable power business
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage coverage remains constructive, with BP listed at a consensus “Moderate Buy,” which may help support the stock but is not a new operational catalyst. BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages
• Neutral Sentiment: Several market-commentary pieces noted BP’s recent momentum and investor attention, but these are largely sentiment-driven and do not change the company’s fundamentals on their own. Here’s Why BP (BP) is a Strong Momentum Stock

BP Profile

BP plc is a British multinational integrated energy company headquartered in London. Originating in the early 20th century as the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, BP has grown into one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, operating across exploration and production, refining and marketing, trading, and a range of low-carbon businesses.

The company’s core activities include upstream exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, midstream and trading operations, and downstream refining, marketing and supply of fuels, lubricants and petrochemicals.