Ruggaard & Associates LLC Trims Holdings in BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP)

Ruggaard & Associates LLC cut its position in shares of BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) by 21.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,626 shares of the mining company’s stock after selling 1,300 shares during the quarter. Ruggaard & Associates LLC’s holdings in BHP Group were worth $226,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of BHP. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in BHP Group by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 22,225,134 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $1,085,253,000 after acquiring an additional 280,258 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in BHP Group by 13.0% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 5,603,624 shares of the mining company’s stock valued at $348,041,000 after purchasing an additional 642,765 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in BHP Group by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 642,756 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $31,386,000 after buying an additional 57,097 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in BHP Group by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 600,086 shares of the mining company’s stock worth $37,271,000 after buying an additional 55,095 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in BHP Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,878,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

BHP Group Price Performance

BHP opened at $42.08 on Friday. BHP Group Limited has a 52-week low of $41.67 and a 52-week high of $63.21. The company has a 50 day moving average of $49.71 and a two-hundred day moving average of $52.23. The company has a market cap of $106.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.56 and a beta of 0.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of BHP Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com lowered shares of BHP Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Clarkson Capital upgraded BHP Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $53.00.

BHP Group Company 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.