Encompass Capital Advisors LLC Invests $40.90 Million in Veren Inc. (NYSE:VRN)

Encompass Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Veren Inc. (NYSE:VRN - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,188,149 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $40,900,000. Veren makes up 2.1% of Encompass Capital Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Encompass Capital Advisors LLC owned about 0.84% of Veren at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new position in Veren in the 2nd quarter valued at $36,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Veren during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. purchased a new position in Veren during the second quarter worth about $61,000. Fifth Third Bancorp purchased a new stake in Veren in the 2nd quarter valued at about $85,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Veren during the 2nd quarter valued at about $108,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 49.37% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Scotiabank decreased their target price on Veren from $16.00 to $15.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th.

Veren Stock Down 4.0 %

Shares of VRN stock traded down $0.25 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $6.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,575,519 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,324,363. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.49 and a quick ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market cap of $3.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -75.88 and a beta of 2.16. The firm's 50 day moving average is $7.02. Veren Inc. has a 12-month low of $6.03 and a 12-month high of $9.28.

Veren (NYSE:VRN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The company reported $0.28 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28. Veren had a positive return on equity of 13.50% and a negative net margin of 0.69%. The company had revenue of $852.57 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $821.00 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Veren Inc. will post 1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Veren Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Sunday, September 15th will be given a $0.0834 dividend. This is an increase from Veren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.08. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $0.33 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.50%. Veren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -412.50%.

About Veren

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.