Brokerages Set BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) Target Price at $53.00

BHP Group Limited (NYSE:BHP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the six ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $53.00.

BHP has been the subject of several research reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of BHP Group from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of BHP Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th.

BHP Group Stock Performance

NYSE BHP opened at $48.43 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’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.03. BHP Group has a 1 year low of $48.06 and a 1 year high of $63.21.

BHP Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BHP Group

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of BHP Group during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of BHP Group during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new position in shares of BHP Group during the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of BHP Group during the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of BHP Group during the third quarter valued at $50,000. Institutional investors own 3.79% of the company’s stock.

About BHP Group

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.