Legal & General Group Plc Invests $9.16 Million in Geo Group Inc (The) $GEO

Key Points

• Legal & General Group acquired 310,152 GEO shares worth approximately $9.16 million, joining other institutions that increased positions; institutional investors now own 76.1% of the stock.
• GEO reported quarterly EPS of $0.37, beating estimates by $0.08, while revenue rose 15.1% year over year to $732.1 million. The stock opened at $30.40, down 4.4%, but remains near its 52-week high.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with an average “Buy” rating and a $40 price target, although two company insiders recently sold shares.

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 310,152 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock, valued at approximately $9,165,000. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.24% of Geo Group at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Geo Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $570,744,000. Rubric Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Geo Group by 139.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 2,986,915 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $61,202,000 after purchasing an additional 1,739,522 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Geo Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $47,605,000. UBS Group AG lifted its position in shares of Geo Group by 56.5% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 3,603,288 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $73,831,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300,139 shares during the period. Finally, Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Geo Group by 32.7% during the third quarter. Cooper Creek Partners Management LLC now owns 4,974,772 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $101,933,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224,847 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Geo Group Stock Down 4.4%

NYSE:GEO opened at $30.40 on Wednesday. Geo Group Inc has a fifty-two week low of $12.51 and a fifty-two week high of $33.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 1.65 and a current ratio of 1.65. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $30.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $23.55.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Matthew Albence sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $31.69, for a total transaction of $316,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 99,399 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,149,954.31. This represents a 9.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ronald A. Brack sold 7,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $32.00, for a total value of $224,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 71,614 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,291,648. The trade was a 8.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 4.98% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Geo Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. UBS Group restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Geo Group in a 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. JonesTrading lifted their price target on Geo Group from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Northland Securities boosted their price target on Geo Group from $30.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Geo Group presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $40.00.

Geo Group Profile

The GEO Group NYSE: GEO is a leading provider of correctional, detention and community reentry services to government agencies around the world. As a real estate investment trust, the company specializes in the design, financing, development and operation of secure facilities for adult and juvenile offenders, immigration detainees and individuals requiring mental health treatment or substance abuse programming. GEO's integrated service model also encompasses electronic monitoring, rehabilitative programming and post-release supervision aimed at reducing recidivism and enhancing public safety.

GEO's portfolio spans a range of facility types, including medium- and maximum-security correctional institutions, residential reentry centers, mental health treatment units and immigration detention centers.

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