Appian Way Asset Management LP Buys 103,042 Shares of Geo Group Inc (The) $GEO

Key Points

• Appian Way Asset Management LP increased its stake in Geo Group by 20.5%, acquiring 103,042 additional shares, bringing its total ownership to 604,872 shares valued at $17.7 million.
• Geo Group announced a $300 million stock buyback program, indicating management’s belief that the stock is undervalued.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of $0.22 per share, exceeding estimates, with a revenue of $636.17 million, up 4.8% from the previous year.

Appian Way Asset Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO - Free Report) by 20.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 604,872 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock after acquiring an additional 103,042 shares during the quarter. Geo Group comprises about 4.0% of Appian Way Asset Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Appian Way Asset Management LP owned 0.43% of Geo Group worth $17,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Geo Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new stake in Geo Group during the first quarter worth approximately $39,000. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in Geo Group during the first quarter worth approximately $58,000. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in Geo Group by 19.8% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,653 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $77,000 after buying an additional 438 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in Geo Group by 29.0% during the fourth quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc now owns 6,760 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $189,000 after buying an additional 1,520 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Geo Group Trading Up 0.8%

Geo Group stock opened at $20.76 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $23.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $26.04. Geo Group Inc has a 52 week low of $11.75 and a 52 week high of $36.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.90 and a current ratio of 0.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.75.

Geo Group (NYSE:GEO - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.16 by $0.06. Geo Group had a return on equity of 7.26% and a net margin of 3.69%.The business had revenue of $636.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $621.55 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.23 earnings per share. Geo Group's quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Geo Group Inc will post 0.83 EPS for the current year.

Geo Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, August 6th that permits the company to buyback $300.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the real estate investment trust to purchase up to 8.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GEO has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Geo Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Jones Trading reduced their target price on shares of Geo Group from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Wedbush restated an "outperform" rating and set a $36.00 target price on shares of Geo Group in a report on Monday, June 23rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $37.00.

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.

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