BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) Short Interest Update

BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,560,000 shares, an increase of 20.8% from the March 31st total of 10,400,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 3,070,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.1 days. Currently, 0.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

BHP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of BHP Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Clarkson Capital raised BHP Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $53.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On BHP Group

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

BHP Group Trading Down 0.4 %

BHP stock traded down $0.22 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $48.15. 3,583,255 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,542,344. BHP Group has a 1-year low of $39.73 and a 1-year high of $63.21. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $122.10 billion, a PE ratio of 10.94 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a yield of 4.8%. BHP Group's payout ratio is currently 44.77%.

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.