Marshall Wace LLP Buys 102,433 Shares of BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP)

Marshall Wace LLP grew its position in BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) by 16.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 710,003 shares of the mining company’s stock after buying an additional 102,433 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP’s holdings in BHP Group were worth $34,669,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in BHP. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its stake in BHP Group by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 13,856 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $677,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in BHP Group by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,150 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $544,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in BHP Group by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Kovack Advisors Inc. now owns 4,353 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 215 shares during the last quarter. Essex Savings Bank boosted its position in shares of BHP Group by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Essex Savings Bank now owns 7,483 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $365,000 after acquiring an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Passumpsic Savings Bank grew its stake in shares of BHP Group by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 4,873 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. 3.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

BHP Group Stock Performance

Shares of BHP opened at $46.59 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $118.14 billion, a PE ratio of 10.59 and a beta of 0.85. BHP Group Limited has a 12 month low of $39.73 and a 12 month high of $63.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $48.40 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.18.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $1.00 dividend. This represents a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. BHP Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BHP shares. Clarkson Capital upgraded BHP Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of BHP Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on BHP Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $53.00.

BHP Group 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, uranium, gold, zinc, lead, molybdenum, silver, iron ore, cobalt, and metallurgical and energy coal.