BofA update shows where active managers are putting money
Investing.com -- Shell (LON:SHEL) said no talks are taking place to acquire rival BP (LON:BP) following earlier reports from the Wall Street Journal that the two oil giants were contemplating a merger.
“This is further market speculation," a company spokesperson told Invesing.com. "No talks are taking place."
BP currently has a market value of approximately $80 billion. So, if a deal were to materialize, including a typical acquisition premium, it could surpass the $83 billion megamerger that created Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) around the turn of the century. However, a deal doesn’t appear to be in the making.
"As we have said many times before we are sharply focused on capturing the value in Shell through continuing to focus on performance, discipline and simplification," a Shell spokesperson further told Investing.com.
The fresh comments from Shell on the matter are consistent with those made by the CEO and CFO during its first-quarter call, when they stated they would rather buy back their own shares than bid for BP.
"I have said in the past that we want to be value hunters. Today, value hunting – in my view – is buying back more Shell," CEO Wael Sawan stated at that time.
BP declined to comment on today’s Wall Street Journal report.
Shares of BP rose 3.2% in U.S. trading following the report, but have since pulled back from their highs. Shell was lower by 0.8% on the NYSE and off the day’s lows.