Shares of British Petroleum (BP) are up 5% after the oil major announced that it is increasing its stock buybacks despite a drop in its annual profit.
The company, commonly referred to as “BP,” announced that it will buyback $3.50 billion U.S. of its own stock in this year’s first half.
BP added that it plans to buyback a total of $14 billion U.S. of its own stock through 2025.
The buybacks come despite the fact that BP’s net profit for all of last year came in at $13.80 billion U.S., down from a record $27.70 billion U.S. in 2022 when crude oil prices were above $100 U.S. per barrel.
BP added that its net debt at the end of 2023 stood at $20.90 billion U.S., down from $21.40 billion U.S. at the end of 2022.
The European oil giant also recently appointed a new chief executive officer (CEO) in Murray Auchincloss. He replaces former CEO Bernard Looney who resigned after less than four years in the top job.
Before today (Feb. 6), the stock of BP had declined 2% in the last 12 months to trade at $34.24 U.S. per share.