Piper Sandler Has Lowered Expectations for Berry (NASDAQ:BRY) Stock Price

Berry (NASDAQ:BRY - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Piper Sandler from $5.00 to $4.00 in a research report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Piper Sandler currently has a neutral rating on the energy company's stock.

Separately, Johnson Rice upgraded Berry from an "accumulate" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st.

Berry Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of Berry stock traded up $0.07 on Thursday, reaching $3.18. 3,936,818 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,131,726. Berry has a one year low of $2.11 and a one year high of $6.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The company has a 50-day moving average of $2.88 and a 200 day moving average of $3.36. The company has a market capitalization of $246.77 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.77 and a beta of 1.09.

Berry (NASDAQ:BRY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The energy company reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.02. Berry had a negative net margin of 4.51% and a positive return on equity of 7.36%. The firm had revenue of $182.65 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $177.00 million. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Berry will post 0.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Berry Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a dividend of $0.03 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.77%. Berry's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -25.53%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Berry

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its stake in Berry by 357.5% during the fourth quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 187,655 shares of the energy company's stock worth $775,000 after acquiring an additional 146,634 shares in the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Berry in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,660,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Berry by 11.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,101,825 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $8,681,000 after purchasing an additional 214,580 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of Berry in the first quarter valued at approximately $238,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Berry by 130.2% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 902,743 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $3,728,000 after purchasing an additional 510,512 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.88% of the company's stock.

About Berry

Berry Petroleum Company, LLC., formerly Berry Petroleum Company, is an independent energy company. The Company is engaged in the production, development, exploitation, and acquisition of oil and natural gas. The Company's principal reserves and producing properties are located in California (South Midway-Sunset (SMWSS)-Steam Floods, North Midway-Sunset (NMWSS)-Diatomite, NMWSS-New Steam Floods, Texas (Permian and E.