BP p.l.c. $BP Stock Sold by Smith Group Asset Management LLC

Key Points

• Smith Group Asset Management cut its BP stake by 89% in the third quarter, selling 59,040 shares and retaining 7,280 shares valued at approximately $320,000. Institutional ownership overall stands at 11.01%.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive: BP has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and a $49.44 average price target, with recent upgrades from HSBC and Mizuho.
• BP reported quarterly earnings of $3.26 per share, exceeding the $2.66 estimate, while revenue of $68.40 billion also topped forecasts. The company increased its annualized dividend to $2.08 per share, implying a 4.1% yield.

Smith Group Asset Management LLC lowered its stake in BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP - Free Report) by 89.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,280 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock after selling 59,040 shares during the quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC's holdings in BP were worth $320,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. increased its stake in shares of BP by 48.8% during the second quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 2,830,923 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $104,603,000 after purchasing an additional 928,617 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of BP by 290.2% during the second quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 2,049,151 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $75,716,000 after acquiring an additional 1,524,048 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of BP by 15.8% in the second quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,410,714 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $52,307,000 after acquiring an additional 192,211 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of BP in the first quarter worth approximately $28,136,000. Finally, Kahn Brothers Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of BP in the second quarter worth approximately $23,094,000. 11.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BP shares. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on BP in a research report on Thursday, October 1st. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded BP from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Needham & Company LLC started coverage on BP in a research note on Thursday, October 1st. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Mizuho upped their target price on BP from $53.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. Finally, HSBC raised BP from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $46.00 to $51.30 in a research note on Friday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, BP presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.44.

Trending Headlines about BP

Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Higher oil prices improve earnings outlook: Rising crude prices, partly driven by Middle East supply concerns, are creating a favorable backdrop for BP and other producers. Analysts expect BP to benefit from the price environment and potentially exceed third-quarter earnings estimates. Watch These 4 Energy Stocks for Q3 Earnings: Beat or Miss?
• Positive Sentiment: Q3 earnings expectations remain strong: BP is scheduled to report on October 30. Forecasts call for revenue of approximately $69.36 billion, up 40.8% year over year, while recent analysis highlights higher oil prices, valuation support and the potential for a sharp profit increase. BP Earnings Preview: Q3 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst earnings estimate raised: Erste Group Bank increased its FY2026 EPS forecast for BP to $8.16 from $7.38, above the current consensus estimate of $8.08. The revision reinforces the improving profit outlook. BP analyst earnings estimate report
• Positive Sentiment: Exploration progress adds potential upside: BP reported hydrocarbon shows at a Brazil pre-salt well and has begun a second exploration phase at Venezuela’s Loran offshore gas field. Successful appraisal could support future reserves and production, though commercial viability is not yet established. BP detects hydrocarbon shows at Brazil pre-salt well
• Neutral Sentiment: Deepwater Horizon settlement removes uncertainty: BP agreed to pay Louisiana about $350 million to resolve remaining economic-damage claims. The settlement closes a long-running legal matter, but the cash cost may already be reflected in the stock’s recent gains. BP settles Louisiana claims following Deepwater Horizon
• Negative Sentiment: Production is expected to decline: Despite the revenue outlook, third-quarter upstream production is forecast at about 2.21 million barrels of oil equivalent per day, down 6.5% year over year. This could limit the benefit of higher commodity prices.

BP Stock Up 1.1%

BP stock opened at $50.31 on Friday. BP p.l.c. has a one year low of $33.22 and a one year high of $51.49. The firm has a market cap of $131.81 billion, a PE ratio of 24.54, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 0.20. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $45.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $42.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.27.

BP (NYSE:BP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.66 by $0.60. The company had revenue of $68.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.14 billion. BP had a return on equity of 16.63% and a net margin of 2.49%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that BP p.l.c. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

BP Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.5196 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. This is a boost from BP's previous quarterly dividend of $0.4992. BP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 100.49%.

BP Company Profile

BP p.l.c. is a global integrated energy company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Its operations span the exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas, as well as the processing, refining, transportation and marketing of energy products.

Through its businesses, BP supplies fuels for road transportation, aviation and marine use, along with lubricants marketed under the Castrol brand. The company also operates retail fuel and convenience locations and provides energy products and services to commercial and industrial customers.

BP has expanded its activities beyond traditional hydrocarbons to include lower-carbon businesses such as renewable power, bioenergy, electric-vehicle charging and hydrogen.

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