BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) Shares Sold by Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lessened its position in BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP - Free Report) by 20.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 359,804 shares of the mining company's stock after selling 94,443 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD's holdings in BHP Group were worth $17,571,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in BHP Group by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 13,856 shares of the mining company's stock worth $677,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in BHP Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,150 shares of the mining company's stock worth $544,000 after acquiring an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of BHP Group by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 4,353 shares of the mining company's stock valued at $213,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. Essex Savings Bank boosted its holdings in BHP Group by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 7,483 shares of the mining company's stock worth $365,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the period. Finally, Passumpsic Savings Bank grew its position in shares of BHP Group by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 4,873 shares of the mining company's stock worth $238,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. 3.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BHP Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE BHP traded down $0.16 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $48.67. 1,851,151 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,528,513. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.30. BHP Group Limited has a twelve month low of $39.73 and a twelve month high of $63.21. The firm has a market cap of $123.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.06 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.8%. BHP Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on BHP. StockNews.com downgraded BHP Group from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Clarkson Capital upgraded BHP Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on BHP Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, BHP Group currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $53.00.

About BHP Group

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.