Stock in BP rose on Tuesday as the British oil major ruled out a share issue and talk persisted of sovereign wealth fund interest, while its Gulf of Mexico oil slick spread to the Texas coast. BP shares were up 3.7 percent after hitting their highest in two weeks. They at one stage had lost more than $100 billion in value in the 78 days following its April 20 oil rig explosion that unleashed the massive spill. Backing came from Royal Bank of Scotland, which upgraded the stock to 'buy' from 'hold'. The shares have drawn some support from talk that the company is a takeover target and has approached sovereign wealth funds with offers of a stake to ward off hostile bids.
Stock in BP rose on Tuesday as the British oil major ruled out a share issue and talk persisted of sovereign wealth fund interest, while its Gulf of Mexico oil slick spread to the Texas coast.
BP shares were up 3.7 percent after hitting their highest in two weeks. They at one stage had lost more than $100 billion in value in the 78 days following its April 20 oil rig explosion that unleashed the massive spill.
Backing came from Royal Bank of Scotland, which upgraded the stock to 'buy' from 'hold'.
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The shares have drawn some support from talk that the company is a takeover target and has approached sovereign wealth funds with offers of a stake to ward off hostile bids.
On Tuesday, a source in the United Arab Emirates added to the speculation sparked by weekend press reports, saying that BP executives had held talks with a number of sovereign wealth funds including Abu Dhabi, Kuwait, Qatar and Singapore.
"BP is seeking a strategic partner so it doesn't get taken over by other major oil companies such as Exxon and Total," the source said.
BP declined to comment on speculation of a stake sale but said there were no plans to issue new equity to anyone, allaying some investors' fears of a dilutive share issue.
"(There are) no current plans to issue new equity. We're always happy to welcome new shareholders or existing shareholders who wish to increase their holdings but there's no plans to issue new equity to anyone," the spokesman said.
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