Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “BP’s fourth-quarter results showed relative resilience in a weak pricing environment.
“Net debt is down again after a spike in the third quarter, but on a 12-month view, it’s not budged much.
“Management is taking some decisive action to fix the balance sheet, scrapping the buyback, doubling down on non-core disposals and upping structural cost-savings targets to $5.5-6.5billion by the end of next year.
“In an effort to clear the decks ahead of the arrival of new CEO Meg O’Neill on April 1, BP’s also written down its underperforming solar and renewable natural gas businesses by around $4b.
“This leaner meaner approach could pave the way for more sustainable payouts to shareholders further down the line, but with investment spend coming down, investors will want some assurance on BP’s plans to remain an energy leader over the long-term.”
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