BP p.l.c. Sponsored ADR (BP.US) is expected to face pressure in Q4 performance, CEO delays investor day due to health reasons.

BP p.l.c. Sponsored ADR (BP.US) stated on Tuesday before the market opened that its fourth quarter performance will be impacted by a decrease in oil and gas production, refining margins, and trading, as well as the delay of Investor Day due to medical procedures planned by CEO Bernard Looney. The company stated that the CEO's recovery process is going well and he is expected to return to the office in February, leading to the postponement of the capital markets event to be held on February 26 in London. The conference, originally scheduled for February 11 in New York, will announce the fourth quarter and 2024 fiscal year results. In a trading update, BP p.l.c. Sponsored ADR stated that it expects fourth quarter upstream production to be lower than the 2.4 million barrels of oil equivalent per day reported in the third quarter. BP p.l.c. Sponsored ADR stated that the average Brent crude price in the quarter was $74.73 per barrel, lower than the $80.34 per barrel in the third quarter, and refining market average profit margins fell to $13.10 per barrel, a decrease of nearly $3.50 per barrel from the previous quarter. However, the company expects a slight increase in natural gas prices to slightly offset the financial impact of the decline in oil prices. The company stated that the decrease in refining margins and the impact of turnaround and maintenance activities will result in a profit decline of up to $300 million, with profits in the oil production and operations sector further decreasing by $200 million to $400 million. BP p.l.c. Sponsored ADR also stated that current estimates for expenses related to foreign exchange losses are around $6 billion, compared to previous guidance of $3 billion to $4 billion.