The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Tuesday.

Separately, Wedbush dropped their target price on The GEO Group from $22.00 to $20.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 8th.

The GEO Group Trading Down 3.8 %

GEO opened at $13.24 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $14.55 and its 200-day moving average is $13.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 0.67. The GEO Group has a 52-week low of $6.94 and a 52-week high of $18.05.

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.19 by ($0.01). The GEO Group had a net margin of 4.51% and a return on equity of 8.88%. The business had revenue of $605.67 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $603.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.22 EPS. Analysts expect that The GEO Group will post 1.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at The GEO Group

In other news, Director Scott Michael Kernan sold 5,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.62, for a total transaction of $72,186.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $326,008.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Scott Michael Kernan sold 5,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.62, for a total transaction of $72,186.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 23,936 shares in the company, valued at approximately $326,008.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Shayn P. March sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.50, for a total transaction of $43,750.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 65,330 shares in the company, valued at $1,143,275. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The GEO Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in The GEO Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,575,361 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $147,021,000 after purchasing an additional 58,184 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in The GEO Group by 1,116.5% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,846,814 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $52,491,000 after purchasing an additional 4,448,385 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in The GEO Group by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,012,341 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $32,624,000 after purchasing an additional 63,101 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in The GEO Group in the fourth quarter worth $32,230,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in The GEO Group by 4.6% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,114,771 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $16,008,000 after purchasing an additional 49,134 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The GEO Group Company Profile

The GEO Group, Inc (NYSE: GEO) engages in ownership, leasing, and management of secure facilities, processing centers, and community-based reentry facilities in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. The company also provides secure facility management services, including the provision of security, administrative, rehabilitation, education, and food services; reentry services, such as temporary housing, programming, employment assistance, and other services; electronic monitoring and supervision services; and transportation services; as well as designs, constructs, and finances new facilities through projects.