Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. Has $2.14 Million Stock Holdings in BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP)

Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc. lowered its stake in BP p.l.c. (NYSE:BP) by 13.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 72,545 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock after selling 11,261 shares during the period. Nikko Asset Management Americas Inc.’s holdings in BP were worth $2,144,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in shares of BP by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 660,538 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $19,526,000 after buying an additional 14,436 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in BP by 30.1% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 474,957 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $14,040,000 after purchasing an additional 110,019 shares in the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS grew its position in shares of BP by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 465,242 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $13,753,000 after purchasing an additional 10,262 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its holdings in shares of BP by 1.2% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 440,973 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock worth $13,842,000 after purchasing an additional 5,150 shares during the period. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky raised its position in shares of BP by 3.8% in the third quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 343,880 shares of the oil and gas exploration company’s stock valued at $10,795,000 after buying an additional 12,700 shares in the last quarter. 11.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

BP Stock Performance

Shares of BP stock opened at $33.76 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $32.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $31.22. BP p.l.c. has a 12 month low of $27.82 and a 12 month high of $40.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 422.00, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 0.58.

BP (NYSE:BP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The oil and gas exploration company reported $0.44 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.12). BP had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 0.20%. Equities research analysts forecast that BP p.l.c. will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

BP Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.69%. BP’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 2,375.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on BP shares. DZ Bank lowered BP from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 11th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on BP from $34.70 to $31.80 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating on shares of BP in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wolfe Research set a $50.00 price target on shares of BP in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of BP from $30.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, BP currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $38.26.

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.