Shares in BP rise 1 percent to 436.70 pence, among thetop gainers on Britain's FTSE 100, after the energycompany wins a legal reprieve in a case related to settlementsover the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
"This is a small, albeit important, bit of news for BP. Wethink that the market has unjustifiably marked down the pricegiven the lack of clarity on the upside cost it may face and theoverhang of the Macondo situation," Atif Latif, director atGuardian Stockbrokers, says.
Latif says that, with the start of more positive news flowcoming through and with the large discount to the sector andpeers, he remains positive on the outlook for BP.
BP shares, which have fallen more than 30 percent since theMacondo well suffered a blowout in April 2010 resulting in theoil spill, trade on a 12-month price/earnings ratio of 7.9times, against the STOXX 600 Oil & Gas sector on 9.5times, Thomson Reuters Datastream shows.
"(Today's news) could help in terms of releasing pressure onthe stock ... It could easily have another 10 to 20 pence upsidefrom here," BTIG strategist Nick Xanders said.
Reuters messagingrm://tricia.wright1.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net