Maybe Croation but

Stay away. XOM is better imo

There's an argument to be made for buying a beaten-down stock but I wouldn't bother. They'll often do better than average but they are usually also riskier, you are just getting what you pay for is all. Neither worse nor better than anything else.

BP is probably one of the most closely-watched companies on the planet right now. In order to "beat the Street" you need to know something the rest of the world doesn't. Sure, maybe the well stops leaking tomorrow and the lawsuits dry up too, but that's just getting lucky, not investing. Any company can get lucky or unlucky.

That said, if you're personally involved with BP's operations right now then you probably do know a few things the rest of us don't, and you can probably play the market accordingly. Check with a securities lawyer though, it may (or may not) be considered insider trading.

But I wouldn't necessarily buy (or stay away from) BP simply b/c I don't know a damn thing about what will happen in the next few months. Just because a stock is lower right now doesn't really mean much.