BP PLC (LSE:BP.) shares only slightly outperformed sector rivals on Monday after the oil group named the successor to chair Helge Lund.
The FTSE 100 group appointed Albert Manifold, former CEO of Irish construction materials group CRH, and said he will take the chair role from the start of October.
Also lifting the shares were reports indicated that the company is selling its US onshore wind business, BP Wind Energy, to US energy infrastructure company LS Power.
BP shares rose 0.3%, compared to a 0.2% fall for Shell and larger drops for European energy giants.
The appointment of Manifold reignited speculation that BP could be seeking more radical moves than those revealed in its recent strategic 'reset', potentially including a switch to a New York stock listing.
Manifold oversaw a similar move when running CRH, several analysts noted.
He therefore "knows the process inside out", said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.
But a switch of BP's main listing to the US "would be a risky move as there is no guarantee of getting a higher valuation".
Admittedly, the announcement about Manifold’s appointment focused on his experience in cutting costs, capital allocation and cash flow.
"While all those elements are priorities for BP, so is the need to get its share price moving higher," said Mould.
"Stripping out costs, expanding interests in oil and gas, and generating more cash could also lead to a higher share price in time, but investors might not have the patience to wait for the results to feed through.
"Instead, the new chair needs to convince the board there are other things that can happen in the meantime to win back the market’s favour."
It is Manifold's first big chairman's role, which Mould noted required a slightly different skillset with less involvement in day-to-day operations and more focus on accountability, governance and direction.
"The muted market reaction to his appointment is a good indicator that investors aren’t blown away by the choice."