The Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price has stepped into the red during afternoon trade on Monday.
Whereas the S&P/ASX 200 index (ASX: XJO) is up 0.16% from the open, Woodside shares are currently 0.89% in negative territory, trading at $20.11.
Let's investigate further.
What's up with the Woodside share price today?
Woodside shares are edging lower despite strengths in the oil markets on Monday. Brent crude is now priced at $72.96 per barrel at the time of writing, up 0.36% on the day.
However, WTI Crude is currently down 0.13% at $68.65 a barrel, which could help explain why the Woodside Petroleum share price is struggling today.
Irrespective of the current state of the oil markets, Woodside shares have been trending down over the last few weeks.
Back on 13 August, Woodside shares took a hit after significant backlash from climate authorities on the approval of the company's Scarborough project in WA.
The company's share price immediately gave away 11.7%, running from $22.19 to a low of $19.60 on 19 August. In fact, the Woodside Petroleum share price has declined by 16.5% over the last three months, as its Scarborough project continues to push through.
Woodside shares have also faced pressure after the company confirmed a merger with the petroleum arm of BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) on 18 August.
Shareholders have voiced concerns over the merger, highlighting ESG risks amongst others.
As there is no market-sensitive news for the company today, it's possible today's dip is part of a wider downward trend for Woodside shares over the last 3 to 6 months.
The same can be said for the share prices of Woodside peers Santos Ltd (ASX: STO), down 17% over the last six months, and Oil Search Ltd (ASX: OSH) down 12% over the same time. Santos and Oil Search are locked into their own merger-saga.
Woodside share price snapshot
The Woodside share price has had a choppy year to date, posting a loss of 11% since January 1.
Despite this, Woodside shares are around 6% in the green over the past 12 months.
The results have lagged the broad index which has posted a return of about 25% over the past year.
