Janney Montgomery Scott LLC Grows Holdings in BP p.l.c. $BP

Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) by 19.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 257,924 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after buying an additional 41,865 shares during the quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC’s holdings in BP were worth $9,530,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in BP by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 39,146 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $1,172,000 after acquiring an additional 1,588 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its position in shares of BP by 7.4% during the second quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 8,295 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in BP by 3.3% in the second quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 12,513 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $375,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares in the last quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in BP in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its stake in BP by 7.0% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 5,738 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $198,000 after buying an additional 374 shares in the last quarter. 11.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on BP from $54.00 to $48.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Freedom Capital raised BP from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Mizuho set a $53.00 price objective on shares of BP in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of BP from $42.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of BP from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, BP has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $46.36.

BP News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Venezuela gas expansion: BP secured a licence to explore and develop the second phase of the offshore Loran gas field with ADNOC-backed XRG and Qatar-linked UCC Oil and Gas Holding. The field is estimated to contain approximately 4 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas, giving BP exposure to a potentially valuable long-term production opportunity as Venezuela reopens its energy sector to international companies. BP granted license for Venezuela’s Loran gas field in partnership with XRG, UCC
• Positive Sentiment: International partnerships reduce execution burden: BP’s partnership with Gulf-backed companies could provide capital, regional expertise and political support for the Venezuelan project. The deal also positions BP among the first major international energy companies returning to the country after years of isolation. BP returns to Venezuela with Gulf partners
• Positive Sentiment: Shah Deniz project advances: Emerson won a multimillion-dollar contract to provide automation technology for BP’s $2.9 billion Shah Deniz Compression project in Azerbaijan. The project is designed to access lower-pressure gas reserves and support production, although the contract is more significant operationally than financially for BP in the near term. Emerson wins contract for BP’s Shah Deniz Compression project
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor positioning: Unusually heavy options activity included purchases of 128,060 call options, more than five times average daily volume. This may indicate increased bullish speculation, but it does not represent a change in BP’s fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: Strategic and geopolitical concerns: The Venezuela announcement came shortly after BP outlined plans to leave the North Sea, raising questions about its geographic priorities and exposure to a politically sensitive market. The Loran licence remains subject to regulatory approvals, and sanctions, infrastructure challenges and political uncertainty could delay development or increase costs. BP to develop offshore gasfield in Venezuela

BP Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:BP opened at $42.56 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $41.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $111.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.76, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. BP p.l.c. has a 52 week low of $32.72 and a 52 week high of $48.27.

BP (NYSE:BP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and gas exploration company reported $2.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.87 by $0.35. BP had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 2.49%.The business had revenue of $69.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 106.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that BP p.l.c. will post 6.04 earnings per share for the current year.

BP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th will be paid a $0.5196 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 14th. This is a positive change from BP’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. BP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 96.59%.

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.