Berry Petroleum Shares Jump After Upgrade

NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Berry Petroleum Co. jumped Friday after an analyst upgraded the independent oil and gas producer, saying it will likely benefit from rising oil prices.

The stock rose $1.23, or 6.1 percent, to $21.46 in afternoon trading. Shares have traded between $5.50 and $62.15 in the past 52 weeks.

Goldman Sachs analyst Brian Singer upgraded the Denver-based company to "Buy" from "Neutral," citing the company's strong oil production outlook as crude prices continue to climb.

Oil prices climbed above $70 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday, and Goldman Sachs expects oil prices to rise slowly over the next three years to $105 by 2012.

Berry Petroleum currently trades lower than most of its peers, despite having comparable returns, Singer said.

Meanwhile, the company's stock price likely will advance as the company's liquidity improves and oil prices rise, he said.

A company representative was not immediately available for comment.