Short Interest in BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) Grows By 10.3%

BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,580,000 shares, an increase of 10.3% from the August 31st total of 10,500,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,410,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on BHP shares. StockNews.com raised shares of BHP Group from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of BHP Group from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Finally, Argus raised shares of BHP Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, BHP Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of BHP Group by 48.9% in the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 600 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of BHP Group by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,925 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $452,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of BHP Group by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 27,500 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,570,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of BHP Group by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 8,212 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $474,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC increased its stake in shares of BHP Group by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC now owns 19,208 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,097,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. 3.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

BHP Group Trading Up 0.4 %

BHP Group stock traded up $0.27 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $62.38. 3,065,048 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,508,869. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.70 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $54.45 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.72. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.52 and a beta of 0.96. BHP Group has a 52-week low of $50.90 and a 52-week high of $69.11.

BHP Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a Semi-Annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $1.465 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 5.2%. This is a positive change from BHP Group’s previous Semi-Annual dividend of $1.44. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. BHP Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.29%.

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.