Stock Traders Purchase High Volume of BHP Group Put Options (NYSE:BHP)

BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) saw unusually large options trading on Tuesday. Stock traders bought 6,375 put options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 96% compared to the average daily volume of 3,257 put options.

BHP Group Trading Down 3.6 %

Shares of BHP Group stock opened at $56.94 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $58.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.13. BHP Group has a 52 week low of $54.28 and a 52 week high of $69.11.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $1.44 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHP. Fairfield Bush & CO. increased its holdings in BHP Group by 1.1% during the 1st quarter. Fairfield Bush & CO. now owns 19,463 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,504,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of BHP Group by 70.0% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 79,400 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $6,134,000 after buying an additional 32,699 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of BHP Group by 62.9% in the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,865 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $685,000 after acquiring an additional 3,424 shares in the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. lifted its stake in BHP Group by 18.5% in the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 1,821,564 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $140,716,000 after acquiring an additional 283,915 shares during the period. Finally, Yousif Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in BHP Group by 71.7% during the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 39,175 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $3,026,000 after acquiring an additional 16,359 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. StockNews.com cut BHP Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. Liberum Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of BHP Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of BHP Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $50.00.

BHP Group Company Profile

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, silver, zinc, molybdenum, uranium, gold, iron ore, and metallurgical and energy coal.