Gabelli Funds LLC Raises Stock Holdings in BP p.l.c. $BP

Gabelli Funds LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 392,400 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after acquiring an additional 22,100 shares during the quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC’s holdings in BP were worth $13,628,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in BP during the third quarter valued at $1,352,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its stake in BP by 22.1% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 127,792 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $4,553,000 after purchasing an additional 23,166 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in BP during the third quarter worth about $793,000. United Community Bank lifted its stake in BP by 173.8% during the third quarter. United Community Bank now owns 29,086 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $1,002,000 after purchasing an additional 18,463 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its holdings in shares of BP by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 139,830 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $4,856,000 after buying an additional 9,000 shares during the period. 11.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BP Stock Up 1.1%

BP stock opened at $46.18 on Wednesday. BP p.l.c. has a fifty-two week low of $28.41 and a fifty-two week high of $48.27. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $45.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $39.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 1.22. The company has a market capitalization of $120.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.18.

BP (NYSE:BP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.24. BP had a return on equity of 12.06% and a net margin of 1.62%.The firm had revenue of $52.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $48.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.53 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that BP p.l.c. will post 5.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BP Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.4992 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.3%. BP’s dividend payout ratio is 165.00%.

Key BP News

Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BP approved a subsea pump installation at its Thunder Horse field, a move aimed at boosting production and improving output from one of its key offshore assets. bp approves subsea pump installation at Thunder Horse to boost production
• Positive Sentiment: BP pulse partnered with Presto to expand DC fast-charging access, reinforcing BP’s push into EV charging and broader energy transition services. Presto, bp pulse Partner to Expand DC Fast Charging Access
• Positive Sentiment: BP is promoting its rewards Visa card with a summer fuel discount offer, which could help attract new customers and drive traffic to bp and Amoco stations. UPDATE – New bp rewards Visa® cardmembers save 50 cents per gallon on fuel
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and commentary continue to argue BP may still look undervalued despite this year’s oil-driven rally, reflecting optimism around valuation but also uncertainty about what could limit further upside. Up 30% this year, the BP share price still looks undervalued despite oil surging. What’s the catch?
• Negative Sentiment: BP still has not reached a deal with the union at its Whiting, Indiana refinery, and the lockout has dragged on for months, keeping labor disruption and operational uncertainty in focus. BP fails to reach deal with union as Indiana refinery lockout drags on
• Negative Sentiment: BP’s Whiting statement said negotiations are still ongoing after the union left talks, signaling that the refinery dispute remains unresolved. bp Whiting Statement: USW leaves negotiations and delays progress. bp Whiting committed to staying at the table.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on BP. UBS Group upgraded BP from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on BP from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded BP from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 30th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on BP from $39.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on BP from $41.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $46.14.

BP Company 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.