Investors Purchase High Volume of Call Options on BP (NYSE:BP)

Key Points

• BP experienced a significant increase in options trading, with 43,499 call options purchased, representing a 54% rise from the average daily volume.
• The stock price rose by 2.3%, reaching $32.49, as BP's trading volume also exceeded its typical levels.
• Analyst ratings for BP are mixed, with two sell ratings, fourteen holds, one buy, and one strong buy, leading to a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $35.50.

BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors purchased 43,499 call options on the stock. Thisisanincreaseof54% compared to the typical volume of 28,313 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BP. Scotiabank reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $34.00 target price (up previously from $30.00) on shares of BP in a report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of BP from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and set a $26.50 target price for the company. in a research report on Monday, May 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on BP from $34.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. UBS Group lowered BP from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price objective on BP from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $35.17.

BP Stock Performance

BP traded up $0.62 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $34.22. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,028,998 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,359,863. BP has a twelve month low of $25.22 and a twelve month high of $35.54. The stock has a market cap of $90.76 billion, a P/E ratio of -74.40, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $31.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

BP (NYSE:BP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.22. BP had a negative net margin of 0.62% and a positive return on equity of 9.51%. The firm had revenue of $46.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $42.88 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. The business's revenue was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that BP will post 3.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of BP

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in BP by 5,751.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 207,606 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $7,015,000 after acquiring an additional 204,058 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of BP by 333.1% during the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 68,980 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $2,332,000 after purchasing an additional 53,054 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in BP by 486.9% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,787,644 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $94,195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,312,687 shares during the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management boosted its position in BP by 54.7% in the first quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 163,147 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $5,513,000 after buying an additional 57,719 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of BP by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 940,786 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $27,810,000 after buying an additional 38,759 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.