BP missed forecasts on Tuesday with an underlying replacement cost profit of $1.38 billion for the first quarter, below the $1.53 billion expected by analysts in a company-provided poll.
BP bought back $750 million in shares, at the low end of its guided range, and announced plans to purchase a further $750 million worth this quarter.
It said it would spend $14.5 billion this year, around $500 million less than its previous guidance, and reiterated its $13-$15 billion target for next year and 2027.
Activist investor Elliott wants BP to boost its free cash flow through significant spending cuts and cost reductions, replace its strategy chief, and create upstream and downstream units to clarify accountability, sources familiar with the matter have told Reuters.
Elliott has increased its stake in BP to just over 5%, placing it between top shareholders BlackRock and Vanguard, LSEG data shows.
In the first quarter last year, BP reported underlying replacement cost profit – its definition of adjusted net income – of $2.7 billion.
OPEC Plans Fresh Oil Output Raise For June
Several members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will suggest accelerating oil output hikes in June for a second consecutive month, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Oil prices fell to a four-year low in April, weakened by a US-China trade war and the unexpected decision by OPEC+, which brings together OPEC and other major producers such as Russia, to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day of oil in May. The figure was three times more than the group originally planned.
Eight OPEC+ countries will meet on May 5 to decide the June output plan. The three sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said some members wanted to increase output by a similar volume to that agreed for May, which already stoked tensions between members that are sticking to targets and those that are exceeding them.
OPEC and the Saudi Arabian authorities did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
