BP PLC (LSE:BP.) beat expectations for second-quarter earnings and unveiled a larger-than-expected dividend and a new $750 million share buyback.
The oil producer reported adjusted earnings per share of 15.03 US cents for the second quarter of 2025, up from 8.75 cents in the first quarter, down compared to 16.61 cents a year ago and above the consensus estimate of 11.71 cents.
Underlying replacement cost profit of $2.35 billion was up from $1.4 billion in Q1 but down 14.5% from last year, though well ahead of the average analyst estimate of $1.75 billion.
The company declared a dividend of 8.32c per share, an increase of 4% year-on-year and a consensus forecast of 8 cents, as operating cash flow came in at $6.27 billion, compared with $2.8 billion in Q1, $8.1 billion in Q2 last year and $6.15 billion expected.
Net debt fell by around a billion in the quarter to $26 billion at the half-year stage.
Chief executive officer Murray Auchincloss said it was "another strong quarter for BP operationally and strategically" as the FTSE 100 company grows its upstream businesses and "focuses" the downstream.
"So far this year we've brought five new oil and gas major projects onstream, sanctioned four more and made ten exploration discoveries," he said, including the significant discovery in Bumerangue block in Brazil announced yesterday.
Expected proceeds from completed or announced divestments have reached around $3 billion for the year so far, he added, with around $1.7 billion of structural cost reductions made.
BP expects reported upstream production in the third quarter to be slightly lower than in the second quarter.