Bp Share Discussion Threads

[parvo] 17/11/2017 17:00

toon- I suspect the 2.75M daily share buyback is currently having an artificial push up on the share price. Where do you think the share price would be if the buyback was not in progress? IMHO, it would now be trading at 485 or below.

[waldron] 17/11/2017 15:32

WHOSE THE SIMPLETON WHO KEEPS MARKING DOWN EVERY POST NO MATTER WHAT


STUPID BOY

[maywillow] 17/11/2017 10:27

Stocks: Oslo Reviews Oil Holdings -- WSJ
17/11/2017 8:02am
Dow Jones News

Shell A (LSE:RDSA)
Intraday Stock Chart

Today : Friday 17 November 2017
Click Here for more Shell A Charts.

By Dominic Chopping

This article is being republished as part of our daily reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S. print edition of The Wall Street Journal (November 17, 2017).

Norway's sovereign-wealth fund said on Thursday it may stop buying oil and gas stocks, a move that would deprive the energy sector of investment from a $1 trillion asset manager.

The Norwegian central bank, which uses the fund to invest the proceeds of the country's oil industry, said that investing money back into the energy sector amplifies the government's exposure to the price of crude, particularly given the country's majority stake in Statoil ASA.

Oil and gas equities currently account for around 6% of the Government Pension Fund Global's benchmark index, or just more than 300 billion Norwegian kroner ($36.49 billion).

The Stoxx Europe 600 Oil & Gas index drifted lower on the news of the potential divestment. Shares in Statoil fell by as much as 1%. The fund owns large stakes in most of the world's major oil companies, including a 0.92% stake in Chevron Corp., a 0.82% stake in Exxon Mobil Corp., 1.65% in BP PLC and 2.23% in Royal Dutch Shell PLC as of the end of 2016.

"An orderly divestment process over a period of time won't significantly impact share prices," said Jefferies analyst Jason Gammel.

Norges Bank, the central bank, made the proposal to Norway's Ministry of Finance on Thursday, saying that, given its size, the fund accounts for an increasingly large share of the nation's wealth and is an integral part of government fiscal policy. That means that the vulnerability of government wealth to a permanent drop in oil and gas prices would be reduced if the fund pulled out of the stocks in that sector, Norges Bank said.

Two years of weaker oil prices has cut into the income of many of the world's largest sovereign-wealth funds, which are in largely resource-dependent countries like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

The Ministry of Finance said the government aims to make a decision in the fall of 2018.

A bank official said that the advice doesn't reflect a view on future oil and gas prices.

Norway's fund was established to harness the country's oil and gas income while also giving the government room for maneuver in fiscal policy should oil prices drop, the mainland economy contract and as its oil eventually runs out.

In September, the fund value reached $1 trillion for the first time after being boosted as the world's major currencies strengthened against the U.S. dollar, combined with strong equity markets.

While the fund's latest proposal was based on concern about overexposure to oil, the fund has been steadily pulling out of mining companies and power producers that derive large portions of income from thermal coal.

Other large investors have launched products that don't invest in fossil fuels.

In April, Storebrand, Norway's largest private-pension fund, said it had launched two new fossil-free funds. Several U.K. pension plans have funds that don't invest in the sector. In 2014, Stanford University said it wouldn't invest in coal-mining companies, and under pressure from environmental activists other U.S. endowment funds have debated whether they should pull out of fossil fuel investments.

On Thursday, Storebrand said in a release that Norge Bank's move should encourage other funds to pressure "oil and gas companies to revisit their investment plans and operations in the transition to a low carbon economy. "

Mr. Gammel, though, said he didn't expect to see a flight of money from the sector.

Sarah Kent contributed to this article.

Write to Dominic Chopping at [e-mail]



(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 17, 2017 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)

[supermarky] 17/11/2017 09:02

Just exited my little short I had from the recent highs.

[toon1966] 16/11/2017 17:14

As I said share buyback really working a treat.....

[hellscream] 16/11/2017 15:27

6-7 down days lol? whats the bad news? oil above $60...

[parvo] 16/11/2017 15:13

Most of July and September in the 450 region; I suspect the drip-feed buyback is just slowing the pace of the drop...IMHO

[ariane] 16/11/2017 14:35

Perhaps good news for sector in that fund expecting best share price by end 2018

Not sure as yet which uk shares might be affected

SEEMS TO BE A TREND AMONG SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUNDS

[toon1966] 16/11/2017 13:20

Share buybacks really working a treat then......

[the grumpy old men] 16/11/2017 09:55

Thu 16-11-2017 13:33 PM
Oil industry needs increasing investment: BP official

By Hatem Hussein ABU DHABI, 16TH November 2017 (WAM) -- The oil and gas industry needs a significant increase in investment over the coming years, according to a senior BP official.

"Oil supply, as opposed to oil demand, will be the big game changer in the future as the world shifts away from the resource scarcity view," said Spencer Dale, BP’s Group Chief Economist, who was speaking at a panel on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, ADIPEC, which concludes today.

Saying that there will be substantial consumption of oil for decades to come, he added, "If you look forward for the next 20-30 years, the combination of improving energy efficiency and technological progress means that supply will significantly outstrip demand as a result of increasing energy abundance."

"As new discoveries are made, perceptions have moved from one of energy scarcity to one of energy abundance," he added, noting that this is having a significant impact on resource owners, many of whom are in the Middle East.

"A considerable amount of investment is likely to be needed for decades to come," Dale predicted, adding, "However, previously driven by the sense of resource scarcity, (this) meant that investment went into any type of oil resource. If you look at (it) now, investors are becoming increasingly choosy about which type of oil in which to invest. BP’s view is to carry on investing in oil as long as there is an advantage to it. The market is increasingly competitive," he said.

Investment now, he suggested, would be committed either because of the intrinsic low-cost of development or because costs could be driven down because of factors such as existing infrastructure and supply flow.
WAM/Chris Moran

[waldron] 16/11/2017 07:44

Shares buy backs at oil giant follow cost cutting drive which has taken toll on jobs in Aberdeen
BP to return billions more to investors after surge in profits

BP to return billions more to investors after surge in profits
0 comments

BP has launched a programme to return around $1.6 billion (£1.2bn) more cash to shareholders a year, after slashing costs in response to the crude price plunge and the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, writes Mark Williamson.

The oil and gas giant has become the first major to restart share buy backs since 2014, when the industry entered a deep downturn after the oil price fell sharply.

BP has shed around 900 jobs in the North Sea and sold off a range of what it deemed non-core assets in the area since 2014.

The company said last month it was planning to resume buy backs after third quarter profits doubled to $1.9bn. Chief executive Bob Dudley thinks BP has been put in shape to prosper if oil sells at $50 per barrel, compared with around $61.90/bbl yesterday.

BP noted its authority to buy back shares took effect yesterday. It will remain in place until the 2018 annual general meeting. The company will decide when to buy shares according to market conditions.

The buy backs will be used to offset the effect of paying around 20 per cent of its dividends in shares.

BP shares closed down 8p at 495p. They hit a two year high of 525p last week.

The cost of the 2010 spill off the US rose $0.2bn to $63.4bn in the third quarter.

[steve73] 16/11/2017 02:42

Does anyone know if they'll be buying back the ADRs in the US, or just the London listed shares..?

Unlikely to drop much now providing they keep up the buy-backs.....IMO

[hellscream] 15/11/2017 17:04

lower the better :) the dividend is safe.

[veryniceperson] 15/11/2017 16:37

450 would be very cheap now. I would certainly buy at that price. Can't see it getting back to that level IMHO.

[parvo] 15/11/2017 15:19

I hope not too many folks were riding the whale at 529, before it returned to the depths. My WW1 sonar suggest 450. DYOR!

[optomistic] 15/11/2017 10:41

We can only wait and see. The shares bought back this time are to be cancelled previously they were added to treasury!
But being cancelled this time it will actually reduce the shares in issue.
I bought a few more this morning with funds ready for more if opportunity arrives.

[skinny] 15/11/2017 10:37

An update on chart from 2nd November.

[parvo] 15/11/2017 10:13

optomistic- yes it is; there's the saying about catching a falling knife; I wonder where this is going. Will the share buy back programme starting today, artificially arrest the decent?

[optomistic] 15/11/2017 09:58

parvo...well there it is...