Auxier Asset Management Cuts Stock Position in BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP)

Auxier Asset Management reduced its stake in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) by 5.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 181,428 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after selling 11,366 shares during the period. Auxier Asset Management’s holdings in BP were worth $5,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of BP. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in BP by 30.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 474,957 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $14,040,000 after buying an additional 110,019 shares in the last quarter. SVB Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of BP in the fourth quarter worth approximately $588,000. ARK & TLK Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of BP during the 4th quarter valued at $434,000. Avior Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in BP by 83.3% during the fourth quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 53,360 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 24,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altrius Capital Management Inc lifted its position in BP by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Altrius Capital Management Inc now owns 272,527 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $8,056,000 after buying an additional 38,751 shares during the last quarter. 11.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BP Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of BP stock opened at $29.11 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $29.75 and its 200 day moving average is $30.57. The company has a market cap of $79.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 363.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. BP p.l.c. has a twelve month low of $25.22 and a twelve month high of $37.58.

BP (NYSE:BP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 29th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.03). BP had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 0.20%. The business had revenue of $46.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.97 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that BP p.l.c. will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

BP Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 6.60%. BP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -413.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. DZ Bank lowered shares of BP from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of BP from $35.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded BP from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. TD Securities reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $36.00 price target (down from $40.00) on shares of BP in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, UBS Group cut BP from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BP has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.28.

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.