BP joins rivals with bumper $8.2 billion profit 

BP Plc is trading down 0.06% at 479.32

BP (NYSE: BP) more than doubled its third-quarter profit from a year earlier to $8.15 billion, lifted by strong natural gas trading. It expanded its share buybacks by $2.5 billion amid rising calls to increase taxes on the energy sector.

The London-based company joins rivals including Shell (LON: RDSa), Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM), and TotalEnergies which also reported bumper profits last week that sparked calls from politicians to hit the sector with new windfall taxes to help governments with soaring energy bills.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday called on major oil companies who are bringing in big profits to stop “war profiteering”, threatening to hit them with higher taxes if they don’t increase production.

BP said it expects to pay around $2.5 billion in taxes for its British North Sea business this year, including $800 million in a windfall tax.

The company paid $5 billion in tax around the world in the quarter at a rate of 37%, Chief Financial Officer Murray Auchincloss told Reuters.

Auchincloss would not comment on Biden’s comment but said BP is increasing the number of drilling rigs in the Gulf of Mexico and shale basins to boost output.

Chief Executive Officer Bernard Looney is leading BP’s pivot away from oil and gas to renewables and low-carbon energy in an effort to slash greenhouse gas emissions. The company aims to reduce its oil and gas output by 40% by 2030.

On technical fronts, BP Plc: RSI stood at 63.49, and currently it is trading above all MA. So, the BUY position can be taken with the following target and stop-loss: 

TRADE SIGNAL -: BP Plc – BUY: 478.82, TARGET: 483.28, STOP LOSS: 477.45