BP p.l.c. $BP Shares Bought by Gabelli Funds LLC

Key Points

• Gabelli Funds LLC has increased its holdings in BP p.l.c. by 2.5%, now owning 358,800 shares valued at approximately $12.12 million.
• BP recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.4942, offering a 5.7% dividend yield based on an annualized amount of $1.98.
• Analyst ratings for BP show a consensus average rating of "Moderate Buy", with target prices ranging up to $42.00.

Gabelli Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 358,800 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock after buying an additional 8,700 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC's holdings in BP were worth $12,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in BP by 2,250.0% during the 1st quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 940 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 900 shares during the period. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in BP during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Missouri Trust & Investment Co increased its position in shares of BP by 400.0% in the 1st quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 1,000 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of BP by 178.0% in the 1st quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 1,034 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 662 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its position in shares of BP by 580.8% in the 1st quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,158 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 1,841 shares during the last quarter. 11.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Melius Research assumed coverage on shares of BP in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $66.00 price objective on the stock. Melius assumed coverage on shares of BP in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $66.00 price objective on the stock. DZ Bank raised shares of BP from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of BP from $27.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of BP from $35.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BP presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $41.77.

BP Stock Performance

NYSE:BP traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $35.26. 7,700,061 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,816,594. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 167.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a 50-day moving average of $32.61 and a 200 day moving average of $31.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. BP p.l.c. has a 1-year low of $25.22 and a 1-year high of $35.54.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $46.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $42.88 billion. BP had a net margin of 0.29% and a return on equity of 9.08%. BP's quarterly revenue was down 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.00 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that BP p.l.c. will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

BP Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $0.4942 dividend. This is a boost from BP's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $1.98 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.6%. BP's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 938.10%.

About BP

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.