Analysts Set BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) Price Target at $53.00

Shares of BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Buy" from the six analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have issued a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $53.00.

BHP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of BHP Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Clarkson Capital upgraded shares of BHP Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of BHP Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th.

BHP Group Price Performance

NYSE:BHP traded up $0.85 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $46.48. 704,449 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,521,317. BHP Group has a 12-month low of $39.73 and a 12-month high of $63.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The company has a market cap of $117.86 billion, a PE ratio of 10.54 and a beta of 0.85. The business's 50-day moving average price is $48.56 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.40.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.8%. BHP Group's dividend payout ratio is 44.77%.

Institutional Trading of BHP Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of BHP Group by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 22,225,134 shares of the mining company's stock worth $1,085,253,000 after acquiring an additional 280,258 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in BHP Group by 58.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,294,562 shares of the mining company's stock worth $112,043,000 after purchasing an additional 846,963 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its position in BHP Group by 16.9% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 710,003 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $34,669,000 after buying an additional 102,433 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of BHP Group by 1,898.9% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 707,405 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $34,543,000 after buying an additional 672,016 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in shares of BHP Group by 9.7% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 642,756 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $31,386,000 after acquiring an additional 57,097 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.79% of the company's stock.

About BHP Group

BHP Group Limited operates as a resources company in Australia, Europe, China, Japan, India, South Korea, the rest of Asia, North America, South America, and internationally. The company operates through Copper, Iron Ore, and Coal segments. It engages in the mining of copper, uranium, gold, zinc, lead, molybdenum, silver, iron ore, cobalt, and metallurgical and energy coal.