Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Trims Stock Holdings in BP p.l.c. $BP

Key Points

• Wedge Capital Management trimmed its stake in BP by 20.1% in Q3, selling 93,645 shares and retaining 371,624 shares valued at about $12.8 million.
• BP raised its quarterly dividend to $0.4992 (annualized $2.00), a 5.9% yield, though the reported payout ratio is an elevated 339.66%.
• Analysts' consensus is an average rating of "Hold" with a mean price target of $43.23, while shares trade near $33.93 and the company has a market cap of roughly $88.6 billion.

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC cut its stake in shares of BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP - Free Report) by 20.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 371,624 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock after selling 93,645 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC's holdings in BP were worth $12,806,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lifted its position in shares of BP by 1.6% in the second quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 485,409 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $14,528,000 after acquiring an additional 7,645 shares in the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC grew its holdings in BP by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 358,800 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $12,124,000 after buying an additional 8,700 shares in the last quarter. Bollard Group LLC raised its position in shares of BP by 12.7% during the second quarter. Bollard Group LLC now owns 337,724 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $10,108,000 after buying an additional 37,974 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of BP by 206.0% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 252,849 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock worth $7,568,000 after acquiring an additional 170,221 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in BP by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 249,305 shares of the oil and gas exploration company's stock valued at $7,462,000 after acquiring an additional 2,555 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 11.01% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on BP. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d+)" rating on shares of BP in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on BP from $41.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of BP in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of BP in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on BP from $40.00 to $38.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $43.23.

Key Stores Impacting BP

Here are the key news stories impacting BP this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS says the hire looks designed to accelerate BP’s strategic pivot toward culture change and returns-focused growth, reinforcing investor hopes for stronger capital allocation and higher returns. Here are BP's priorities as new boss joins to accelerate change, says UBS
• Positive Sentiment: City broker Panmure Liberum welcomed the abrupt leadership change as a decisive break from perceived strategic drift and underperformance, suggesting analysts see a credible chance of improved execution and shareholder returns. City broker welcomes BP's leadership change
• Positive Sentiment: Profiles of O’Neill’s tenure at Woodside highlight deals and portfolio expansion, supporting the view she has the commercial track record to simplify BP and grow production/returns. That track record underpins investor confidence in near-term cash-generation focus. Incoming BP chief charted expansive legacy at Australia's Woodside
• Neutral Sentiment: The transition is staged — O’Neill will take over in April 2026 — giving investors time to assess strategic continuity and management plans before immediate operational changes. BP names Meg O'Neill new CEO — its fourth in 6 years
• Neutral Sentiment: Technically, the stock has crossed key moving averages (200-day), drawing attention from traders; some commentary frames that as a potential tactical sell/rotation point even as sentiment improves. BP NYSE: BP Shares Pass Above 200 Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple outlets argue the appointment marks a retreat from BP’s prior renewables-led strategy — a potential negative for ESG-focused investors and for longer-term diversification into low-carbon businesses. That could reduce demand from some institutional holders. BP's CEO shake-up signals the end of its green energy era
• Negative Sentiment: Governance and stability concerns: this is BP’s fourth CEO in six years and the abrupt nature of the exit raises questions about board oversight and potential near-term disruption. BP turns to outsider Meg O’Neill to simplify sprawling empire

BP Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of NYSE BP opened at $33.93 on Monday. BP p.l.c. has a 1 year low of $25.22 and a 1 year high of $37.64. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.79. The company has a market cap of $88.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.50, a PEG ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

BP (NYSE:BP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.85 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.13. BP had a return on equity of 9.07% and a net margin of 0.79%.The firm had revenue of $48.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.76 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.83 EPS. BP's quarterly revenue was up 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that BP p.l.c. will post 3.53 earnings per share for the current year.

BP Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 19th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th were paid a dividend of $0.4992 per share. This is a boost from BP's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 14th. BP's payout ratio is presently 339.66%.

About BP

BP plc is a British multinational integrated energy company headquartered in London. Originating in the early 20th century as the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, BP has grown into one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, operating across exploration and production, refining and marketing, trading, and a range of low-carbon businesses.

The company's core activities include upstream exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas, midstream and trading operations, and downstream refining, marketing and supply of fuels, lubricants and petrochemicals.

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