Shares in BP dropped sharply on Tuesday after the British oil major fell short of analysts’ expectations in posting a 60% drop in its third-quarter profits, following a weak performance from its gas trading division.
In the first set of results following its CEO reshuffle, the London-listed company missed analysts’ forecasts in posting third-quarter replacement cost profits worth $3.29 billion, compared to the $4.01 billion forecast by 23 analysts polled by the company itself.
BP shares
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-4.18%
BP,
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fell 4% on Tuesday having risen by 5% over the previous 12 months.
The $3.29 billion worth of profits marks a 60% drop on the bumper $8.15 billion profits it posted in the third quarter of 2022, after oil and gas prices surged following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Higher earnings from BP’s oil segment were partially offset by lower profits from its gas and low carbon energy business, which the firm blamed on weak results from its gas marketing and trading division.
The British firm’s bottom line was also hit by a $540 million impairment charge to the value of three wind farms it jointly owns with Norway’s state-owned oil company Equinor off the coast of New York.
The writedown follows a decision on the part of New York state’s utilities regulator to refuse BP’s request to renegotiate a power purchasing agreement.
BP, in turn, held its dividend 7.27 cents per share, as the company said it would buy back a further $1.5 billion worth of its own shares in the fourth quarter, following its $2 billion share buyback scheme in the third quarter.
