Oil giant BP has raised its dividend 5.6 per cent to 9.5 cents a share after third quarter earnings fell less than expected.
Profit adjusted for one-time items and inventory changes declined to $3.7bn from $5bn a year earlier, beating the $3.4bn forecast.
The decline reflected reduced income from its Russian business.
The company said it will sell a further $10bn of assets by the end of 2015 and give most of the proceeds to shareholders, favouring buybacks.
BP has already sold $38bn of assets to pay for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill of 2010.
However, asset sales have become frequent in the sector due to rising costs and falling oil prices.
Including the impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, net cash provided by operating activities for the quarter and nine months was $6.3bn and $15.7bn respectively, compared with $6.2bn and $14.1bn a year ago.
Net debt at the end of the quarter was $20.1bn, down from $31.3bn last year.
Investec reiterated a 'hold' rating and a target price of 450p.
"The stockmarket doesn't want the oil majors to spend money. Instead, investors want their cash back," according to Investec analyst Neill Morton.
"And BP has obliged this morning, with an increase in the dividend, a new $10bn disposal programme (with proceeds going to share buybacks) and indicated flat capex in 2014. The bull case for 2014 is that operational gearing could surprise on the upside. The downside is that this could yet be overshadowed by the Macondo legal fallout. Hold retained."
Source: LiveCharts
Profit adjusted for one-time items and inventory changes declined to $3.7bn from $5bn a year earlier, beating the $3.4bn forecast.
The decline reflected reduced income from its Russian business.
The company said it will sell a further $10bn of assets by the end of 2015 and give most of the proceeds to shareholders, favouring buybacks.
BP has already sold $38bn of assets to pay for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill of 2010.
However, asset sales have become frequent in the sector due to rising costs and falling oil prices.
Including the impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, net cash provided by operating activities for the quarter and nine months was $6.3bn and $15.7bn respectively, compared with $6.2bn and $14.1bn a year ago.
Net debt at the end of the quarter was $20.1bn, down from $31.3bn last year.
Investec reiterated a 'hold' rating and a target price of 450p.
"The stockmarket doesn't want the oil majors to spend money. Instead, investors want their cash back," according to Investec analyst Neill Morton.
"And BP has obliged this morning, with an increase in the dividend, a new $10bn disposal programme (with proceeds going to share buybacks) and indicated flat capex in 2014. The bull case for 2014 is that operational gearing could surprise on the upside. The downside is that this could yet be overshadowed by the Macondo legal fallout. Hold retained."
Source: LiveCharts
