Corient IA LLC Purchases Shares of 5,000 BHP Group Limited Sponsored ADR $BHP

Key Points

• Corient IA LLC invested approximately $243,000 in BHP Group Limited Sponsored ADR by purchasing 5,000 shares in the first quarter, as reported in their SEC filing.
• Multiple hedge funds, including Sowell Financial Services LLC and Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC, have also adjusted their stakes in BHP, indicating heightened institutional interest in the company.
• BHP Group's stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" from analysts, with a consensus price target set at $48.50 after several recent rating downgrades.

Corient IA LLC acquired a new stake in BHP Group Limited Sponsored ADR (NYSE:BHP - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 5,000 shares of the mining company's stock, valued at approximately $243,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in BHP Group by 58.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its stake in BHP Group by 1,898.9% in the 4th 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. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in BHP Group by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 681,659 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $33,088,000 after buying an additional 38,903 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in BHP Group by 94.9% in the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 422,239 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $20,495,000 after buying an additional 205,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Willis Investment Counsel increased its stake in BHP Group by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 411,130 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $19,956,000 after buying an additional 7,816 shares during the last quarter. 3.79% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BHP Group Price Performance

BHP stock traded up $1.4250 during trading on Friday, reaching $55.9250. 3,994,711 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,920,826. The company has a 50-day moving average of $51.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $49.67. The company has a market capitalization of $141.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.71 and a beta of 0.80. BHP Group Limited Sponsored ADR has a twelve month low of $39.73 and a twelve month high of $63.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

BHP Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $1.185 dividend. This is an increase from BHP Group's previous semi-annual dividend of $1.00. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a yield of 410.0%. BHP Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 44.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on BHP. Berenberg Bank reiterated a "sell" rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of BHP Group in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating on shares of BHP Group in a research note on Wednesday. Argus lowered shares of BHP Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. BMO Capital Markets lowered shares of BHP Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Sunday, July 27th. Finally, Macquarie downgraded shares of BHP Group from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $48.50.

BHP Group Profile

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.