Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO) Stock Has Average Price Target of $40.00

Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO) has received a consensus rating of “Buy” from the six brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $40.00.

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GEO. Noble Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Geo Group in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen cut Geo Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Geo Group in a research note on Friday, September 4th. Northland Securities raised their price objective on shares of Geo Group from $30.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Geo Group in a research report on Monday, August 10th.

Geo Group Trading Up 3.2%

Shares of GEO stock opened at $32.37 on Tuesday. Geo Group has a 12 month low of $12.51 and a 12 month high of $33.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.65, a current ratio of 1.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The business’s 50 day moving average is $31.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $26.37. The company has a market cap of $4.26 billion, a PE ratio of 15.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.77.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $732.07 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $721.43 million. Geo Group had a net margin of 10.31% and a return on equity of 10.42%. Geo Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.22 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Geo Group will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Geo Group

In related news, VP Matthew Albence sold 11,797 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president owned 87,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,755,082.90. This trade represents 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 hyperlink. Also, insider Ronald A. Brack sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total transaction of $224,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 71,614 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,291,648. The trade was a 8.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 28,797 shares of company stock worth $911,916 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 4.98% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Geo Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Geo Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its stake in Geo Group by 111.9% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,723 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc bought a new stake in Geo Group in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its holdings in Geo Group by 22.7% in the 1st quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 3,866 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 715 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Geo Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $229,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Geo Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Geo Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: GEO completed the $950 million sale of three Adelanto facilities totaling 2,644 beds to the U.S. government and its Department of Homeland Security assigns. The transaction provides significant liquidity and validates the value of the company’s detention assets. GEO Adelanto sale announcement
• Positive Sentiment: The company increased its share-repurchase authorization to $1.25 billion. The larger buyback program could reduce the share count and increase earnings per share, supporting the stock after the asset sale. GEO expands share buyback
• Positive Sentiment: The sale and buyback announcement helped drive GEO to a new 52-week high of $33.16, indicating strong investor momentum and confidence in management’s ability to monetize assets and return capital. GEO reaches 52-week high

Geo Group Company Profile

The GEO Group, Inc (NYSE: GEO) is a provider of correctional, detention and community-reentry services. The company designs, finances, develops and manages secure facilities for federal, state and local government agencies, as well as certain international government clients. Its facilities house individuals in pretrial detention, immigration detention and correctional programs.

GEO also provides correctional and behavioral healthcare, transportation and security services, and electronic monitoring technologies.