Traders Purchase Large Volume of BHP Group Call Options (NYSE:BHP)

BHP Group Limited Sponsored ADR (NYSE:BHP) was the target of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Investors bought 164,218 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 3,860% compared to the typical volume of 4,147 call options.

BHP Group Stock Performance

BHP stock traded down $0.65 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $92.78. 2,346,077 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,262,635. The business has a 50-day moving average of $86.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $82.20. BHP Group has a 52 week low of $51.83 and a 52 week high of $98.71. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

BHP Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $1.98 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a yield of 404.0%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHP. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in shares of BHP Group by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 13,800,183 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $833,117,000 after acquiring an additional 2,562,747 shares in the last quarter. SIH Partners LLLP raised its position in BHP Group by 937.5% in the third quarter. SIH Partners LLLP now owns 1,856,704 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $103,511,000 after purchasing an additional 1,677,739 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its stake in BHP Group by 264.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,358,585 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $82,018,000 after purchasing an additional 985,794 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in BHP Group by 25.2% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 3,465,421 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $193,197,000 after purchasing an additional 697,316 shares during the period. Finally, Main Street Research LLC acquired a new stake in BHP Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,767,000. 3.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on BHP. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of BHP Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 18th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of BHP Group in a research report on Monday, June 8th. Bank of America cut their price objective on BHP Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating on shares of BHP Group in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded BHP Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BHP Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $78.00.

About BHP Group

BHP Group is an Anglo-Australian natural resources company engaged principally in the exploration, development, production and marketing of commodities. Its core businesses include the extraction and processing of iron ore, copper, metallurgical and thermal coal, nickel and other minerals. BHP operates large-scale mining and processing assets and supplies raw materials used across steelmaking, energy and industrial supply chains.

The company has a global operating footprint with significant assets and projects in Australia and the Americas, and commercial activities that serve customers worldwide.