BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) Short Interest Update

BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP - Get Free Report) saw a significant drop in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 15,600,000 shares, a drop of 19.0% from the January 31st total of 19,270,000 shares. Approximately 0.6% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 11,170,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.4 days.

BP Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of BP traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $31.59. The stock had a trading volume of 1,548,629 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,979,957. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $31.32. BP has a fifty-two week low of $27.82 and a fifty-two week high of $40.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market cap of $84.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 394.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58.

BP (NYSE:BP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.12). BP had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 0.20%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that BP 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, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be paid a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.08%. BP's dividend payout ratio is currently 2,375.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on BP from $30.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of BP from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on BP from $34.70 to $31.80 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded BP from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating on shares of BP in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BP currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $38.26.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BP

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Asset Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of BP during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Bank & Trust Co raised its holdings in shares of BP by 404.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 2,120 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $63,000 after purchasing an additional 1,700 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in shares of BP by 41.0% in the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 2,221 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $66,000 after acquiring an additional 646 shares during the period. Anchor Investment Management LLC raised its stake in BP by 58.7% in the third quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 3,120 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $98,000 after buying an additional 1,154 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of BP by 26.9% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Shields Capital Management LLC now owns 7,550 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 11.01% of the company's stock.

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.