BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) released its earnings numbers for the three months ended September 2013 this morning before the market opened in New York. The oil company showed earnings of $3.7 billion for the three months ended September 2013. On this morning’s market shares in BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) were trading up by more than 4.% on their home market in London.
In the run up to this morning’s earnings report analysts following BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) were looking for earning of $3.4 billion from the oil and gas exploration company. In the same three months of 2013 the company managed to earn $5 billion. BP is still on the long road to recovery from the 2010 oil spill that destroyed the company’s reputation and hit its bottom line.
BP earnings
Since BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) took that hit, the company has been concentrating on asset sales as it shifts its business, and seeks to pay the settlements and fines related to the 2010 incident. In this morning’s earnings report the company announced that it would increase its dividend to 9.5 cent per share.
BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) shares have still not recovered from the drop in value they faced as a result of the Gulf oil spill. The company’s stock is down by about 26% from the level it held in April of 2010, just before the incident became public.
BP performance
So far in 2013 shares in BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) have gained a little over 11%. The company has underperformed the S&P 500, which has gained more than 20% so far this year, but they aren’t that far behind the FTSE-100 for the period. Since January 1 the index of British equities has gained around 14%.
Executives from BP plc (NYSE:BP) (LON:BP) will host a conference call at !0 AM EST in order to discuss this morning’s earnings report. The firm’s investors, and the analysts studying the stock, will be looking to hear about the company’s guidance for the current three month period, and updates on its asset sales.
