In 2013, BP plc, (www.bp.com) paid 4 cash dividends to shareholders, as they have a quarterly dividend policy.This makes BP an attractive investment option for investors seeking an income, such as Pension Funds or Investment Funds.

[http://www.legalandgeneral.com/_resources/pdfs/investments/managers-report-interim/IM_SR_UK_Equity_Income_Fund.pdf]

See how this fund the Legal and General Equity Income Fund has investments in BP, the fund needs to pay out to its investors, and thus why 3% of the fund is held in BP.

BP paid the following in 2013:-

28-Mar-13 6.0013p per share
21-Jun-13 5.8342p per share
20-Sep-13 5.7630p per share
20-Dec-13 5.8008p per share

So the interesting calculation is what the actual Ordinary Share dividend costs BP. The issued share capital of BP p.l.c. comprised of 18,638,693,405 shares.

Thus:

28-Mar-13: = 18,638,693,405 x £0.060013 per share = £1,118,563,907
21-Jun-13: = 18,638,693,405 x £0.058342 per share = £1,087,418,651
20-Sep-13: = 18,638,693,405 x £0.057630 per share = £1,074,147,901
20-Dec-13: = 18,638,693,405 x £0.058008 per share = £1,081,193,327

For 2013, the cash dividend cost BP:

∑(£1,118,563,907 + £1,087,418,651 + £1,074,147,901 + £1,081,193,327)

= £4,361,323,786

That is £4.361 Billion = £4361 Million paid out to the deserving shareholders of BP plc. Pension Funds and Income seeking investors deserve a decent dividend stream. BP is delivering stable returns.