Berry Global Group, Inc. (NYSE:BERY) Short Interest Up 11.9% in August

Berry Global Group, Inc. (NYSE:BERY) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 5,270,000 shares, an increase of 11.9% from the August 15th total of 4,710,000 shares. Approximately 4.6% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 945,900 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 5.6 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on BERY. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Berry Global Group in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $76.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on Berry Global Group from $89.00 to $77.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Berry Global Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.82.

Berry Global Group Stock Performance

Berry Global Group stock traded up $2.05 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $67.58. The company had a trading volume of 703,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,031,153. Berry Global Group has a one year low of $53.92 and a one year high of $69.93. The firm has a market cap of $7.74 billion, a PE ratio of 15.94, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.15. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $64.59 and a 200 day moving average of $61.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.57, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.08.

Berry Global Group (NYSE:BERY) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.02 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.26 billion. Berry Global Group had a return on equity of 27.32% and a net margin of 4.55%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.90 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Berry Global Group will post 7.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Berry Global Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd will be given a $0.275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.63%. Berry Global Group’s payout ratio is presently 26.13%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Berry Global Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in Berry Global Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $247,000. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of Berry Global Group by 50.2% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 107,955 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,275,000 after purchasing an additional 36,096 shares in the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Berry Global Group in the fourth quarter worth $290,000. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its stake in Berry Global Group by 122.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 13,629 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $918,000 after purchasing an additional 7,494 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Berry Global Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $646,000. 95.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Berry Global Group

Berry Global Group, Inc manufactures and supplies non-woven, flexible, and rigid products in consumer and industrial end markets in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Consumer Packaging International; Consumer Packaging North America; Engineered Materials; and Health, Hygiene & Specialties segments.