Veren (NYSE:VRN) Stock Rating Upgraded by Raymond James

Raymond James upgraded shares of Veren (NYSE:VRN) to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning, Marketbeat reports.

Separately, Scotiabank dropped their target price on Veren from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 12th.

Veren Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:VRN opened at $6.03 on Thursday. Veren has a 1-year low of $5.95 and a 1-year high of $9.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market cap of $3.73 billion, a PE ratio of -75.38 and a beta of 2.14. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $6.67.

Veren (NYSE:VRN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.28. The business had revenue of $852.57 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $821.00 million. Veren had a negative net margin of 0.69% and a positive return on equity of 13.50%. Sell-side analysts expect that Veren will post 0.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Veren Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Sunday, September 15th were issued a dividend of $0.0834 per share. This is a boost from Veren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. This represents a $0.33 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Veren’s dividend payout ratio is currently -412.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veren

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Veren in the second quarter valued at approximately $36,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Veren during the 2nd quarter worth $42,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Veren during the 2nd quarter worth $61,000. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new position in shares of Veren in the 2nd quarter valued at about $85,000. Finally, Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new stake in shares of Veren in the second quarter valued at about $103,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 49.37% of the company’s stock.

Veren Company Profile

Veren Inc explores, develops, and produces oil and gas properties in Canada and the United States. The company focuses on crude oil, tight oil, natural gas liquids, shale gas, and natural gas reserves. Its properties are located in the provinces of Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and Manitoba; and the states of North Dakota.