BP (NYSE:BP) Lifted to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of BP (NYSE:BP) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Wednesday morning.

BP has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Hsbc Global Res raised BP to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. HSBC downgraded shares of BP from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on BP from $41.00 to $39.00 and set an equal weight rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Wolfe Research started coverage on BP in a report on Thursday, July 18th. They set an outperform rating and a $57.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Scotiabank lowered their target price on BP from $47.00 to $42.00 and set a sector outperform rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $43.73.

BP Stock Performance

Shares of BP opened at $31.43 on Wednesday. BP has a 1 year low of $30.52 and a 1 year high of $40.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.27 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.24. The company’s fifty day moving average is $33.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $35.86.

BP (NYSE:BP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $1.00 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $47.30 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.82 billion. BP had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 13.83%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that BP will post 3.85 earnings per share for the current year.

BP Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. This is a boost from BP’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. BP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.56%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BP

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of BP. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in BP during the first quarter worth about $31,000. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BP in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in BP during the second quarter worth approximately $38,000. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in BP by 576.0% during the fourth quarter. Guardian Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,129 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 962 shares during the period. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky boosted its holdings in shares of BP by 85.7% in the 2nd quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 1,300 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.01% of the company’s stock.

BP Company Profile

BP p.l.c. provides carbon products and services. The company operates through Gas & Low Carbon Energy, Oil Production & Operations, and Customers & Products segments. It engages in the production of natural gas, and integrated gas and power; trading of gas; operation of onshore and offshore wind power, as well as hydrogen and carbon capture and storage facilities; trading and marketing of renewable and non-renewable power; and production of crude oil.