Geo Group (NYSE:GEO) Shares Down 4.7% – Here’s Why

Shares of Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO) were down 4.7% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $30.44 and last traded at $30.28. Approximately 796,912 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 62% from the average daily volume of 2,123,727 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.76.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GEO has been the subject of several research reports. Noble Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Geo Group in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Northland Securities raised their target price on Geo Group from $30.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Zacks Research upgraded Geo Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. JonesTrading increased their price objective on Geo Group from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Geo Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Geo Group currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.00.

Geo Group Price Performance

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $31.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $25.11. The company has a market capitalization of $3.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00.

Geo Group (NYSE:GEO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.08. Geo Group had a return on equity of 10.42% and a net margin of 10.31%.The business had revenue of $732.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $721.43 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.22 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Geo Group Inc will post 1.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Geo Group

In other Geo Group news, VP Matthew Albence sold 11,797 shares of Geo Group stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.45, for a total value of $371,015.65. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 87,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,755,082.90. The trade was a 11.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ronald A. Brack sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $224,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 71,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,291,648. This trade represents a 8.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,797 shares of company stock valued at $911,916. Insiders own 4.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Geo Group during the second quarter worth $570,744,000. Pentwater Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Geo Group during the second quarter worth about $312,698,000. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Geo Group by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 5,314,006 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $89,328,000 after buying an additional 661,281 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new stake in Geo Group during the second quarter worth $118,673,000. Finally, Rubric Capital Management LP raised its holdings in Geo Group by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 3,743,180 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $62,923,000 after buying an additional 256,265 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Geo Group Company Profile

The GEO Group, Inc (NYSE:GEO) is a provider of correctional, detention, reentry and community-based services. The company designs, develops, finances and manages secure facilities for government agencies, including correctional institutions, immigration detention centers and other custodial facilities.

GEO also provides electronic monitoring and community supervision services, including location monitoring, case management and related technologies. Through its reentry services, the company operates residential centers and programs intended to support individuals transitioning from incarceration to community living, employment and other post-release services.

Founded in 1984 as Wackenhut Corrections Corporation, the company adopted the name The GEO Group in 2003.