Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Shares Gap Up – What’s Next?

Shares of Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) gapped up before the market opened on Thursday. The stock had previously closed at $2.59, but opened at $2.69. Kosmos Energy shares last traded at $2.69, with a volume of 782,340 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on KOS shares. Stephens lowered their target price on shares of Kosmos Energy from $3.00 to $2.40 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Mizuho upgraded shares of Kosmos Energy to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kosmos Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $2.53.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.57 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.18 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $2.71 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2.68.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $607.25 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $483.23 million. Kosmos Energy had a negative net margin of 33.98% and a negative return on equity of 17.73%. On average, analysts forecast that Kosmos Energy Ltd. will post 0.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kosmos Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 6.2% during the first quarter. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC now owns 20,678,033 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $57,485,000 after buying an additional 1,208,053 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in Kosmos Energy by 9.2% in the first quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 7,694,248 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $21,390,000 after acquiring an additional 646,052 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 20.5% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,083,075 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $19,699,000 after acquiring an additional 1,204,789 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,541,020 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $15,404,000 after acquiring an additional 689,800 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 224.0% in the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 5,339,638 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $14,844,000 after purchasing an additional 3,691,800 shares in the last quarter. 95.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kosmos Energy Company Profile

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE: KOS) is an independent international energy company engaged in the exploration, development and production of oil and natural gas. The company focuses primarily on offshore assets and seeks to develop hydrocarbon resources in selected emerging and frontier basins.

Kosmos has historically maintained a portfolio concentrated along the Atlantic margins of Africa. Its activities have included oil production and development projects offshore Ghana, including interests in the Jubilee and TEN fields, as well as natural gas exploration and development in the offshore Mauritania-Senegal basin.