BP plc (BP Quick QuoteBP - Free Report) announced that it has entered into an accord to acquire full ownership of its Thorntons retail joint venture. The British energy giant has aimed to acquire the business’ remaining stake from ArcLight Capital Partners, LLC.

In 2019, the joint venture between BP and ArcLight acquired Thorntons, which is headquartered in Louisville, KY. With the likely closure of the recently-announced deal later this year, upon receipt of regulatory approvals, BP will be able to broaden its presence in the U.S. fuels and convenience retail business. In fact, the deal will help the integrated energy player gain ownership interests and operatorship in 208 locations in the states of Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, Florida and Ohio. 

In its global network of convenience stores, the company is planning to boost the number of strategic sites to more than 3,000 by 2030 from the current tally of roughly 2,000. With ever-changing consumer needs, convenience retail is evolving. The recent deal will thus place BP well to capitalize on the growing demand from consumers and boost earnings.

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Currently, BP carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Meanwhile, a few better-ranked players in the energy space include Whiting Petroleum Corporation , Continental Resources, Inc.  and PDC Energy, Inc. . All the stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Whiting Petroleum has witnessed upward earnings estimate revisions for 2021 in the past 30 days.

Continental is expected to witness earnings growth of 256% in 2021.

PDC Energy is likely to see earnings growth of 111.8% in 2021.