BP (NYSE:BP) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) saw strong trading volume on Tuesday after Zacks Research upgraded the stock from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating. 8,771,293 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 33% from the previous session’s volume of 13,042,871 shares.The stock last traded at $47.9910 and had previously closed at $47.35.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on BP. TD Cowen dropped their price target on shares of BP from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Evercore set a $38.00 price objective on shares of BP and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $51.00 target price on shares of BP in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BP in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Scotiabank raised BP to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $40.18.

Key Headlines Impacting BP

Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks upgraded BP to a “Strong Buy”, which supports demand for the shares by highlighting improved earnings prospects and income/value appeal. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Azule Energy (the Eni–BP JV) plans to sell stakes in Angola Blocks 14 and 14K for up to $310M — a monetization that trims non-core exposure and generates cash to redeploy or return to shareholders. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: BP completed small retail asset sales (13 Thorntons c-stores), consistent with portfolio sharpening and cash generation efforts. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Meg O’Neill formally became CEO and pledged “consistency” and clearer direction — this reduces some strategy flip-flop risk but leaves execution and investor trust to be proven. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage notes the challenges the new CEO faces and broader governance scrutiny; management clarity may be positive long-term but creates near-term uncertainty. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: News about former CEO Bernard Looney taking a role at a data-center developer is unlikely to affect BP’s operations or near-term fundamentals. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Labor disruption risk: Indiana’s governor joined locked-out BP refinery workers on the picket line amid a contract impasse — a potential source of production disruption, higher costs, or reputational risk if escalated. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Despite positive analyst notes, the stock is trading lower today with heavy volume — indicative of profit-taking or risk-off by traders reacting to management transition and labor headlines. Read More.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BP. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in BP in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of BP during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of BP during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. YANKCOM Partnership grew its holdings in shares of BP by 1,068.3% in the 4th quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 958 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of BP during the third quarter worth $43,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 11.01% of the company’s stock.

BP Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $121.15 billion, a PE ratio of -4,615.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 0.21. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $40.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $36.89.

BP (NYSE:BP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. BP had a return on equity of 9.68% and a net margin of 0.03%.The firm had revenue of $47.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $42.19 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.44 EPS. BP’s revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that BP p.l.c. will post 3.53 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BP Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 20th were issued a dividend of $0.4992 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 20th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.3%. BP’s payout ratio is currently -19,800.00%.

About BP

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.