First Trust Advisors LP Grows Holdings in Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS)

First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS - Free Report) by 61.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,483,642 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 944,382 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.53% of Kosmos Energy worth $8,494,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 103.7% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,272,525 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $4,352,000 after purchasing an additional 647,921 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Kosmos Energy by 11.3% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 29,556,382 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $101,083,000 after buying an additional 2,997,438 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in Kosmos Energy by 85.0% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 5,611,213 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $19,190,000 after acquiring an additional 2,578,431 shares in the last quarter. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 39.2% during the 4th quarter. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC now owns 11,421,895 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $39,063,000 after acquiring an additional 3,218,394 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 33.2% in the 4th quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 536,870 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,836,000 after acquiring an additional 133,704 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.33% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KOS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Kosmos Energy from $4.00 to $3.50 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com downgraded Kosmos Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Benchmark downgraded Kosmos Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $5.18.

Insider Activity at Kosmos Energy

In other Kosmos Energy news, SVP Christopher James Ball sold 84,898 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.12, for a total value of $264,881.76. Following the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 1,639,925 shares in the company, valued at $5,116,566. This represents a 4.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Josh R. Marion sold 16,144 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $3.12, for a total transaction of $50,369.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 172,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $536,817.84. The trade was a 8.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 503,970 shares of company stock worth $1,572,386. Corporate insiders own 2.02% of the company's stock.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:KOS traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $1.71. The stock had a trading volume of 9,459,211 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,266,317. The stock has a market cap of $815.01 million, a P/E ratio of 3.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.24 and a beta of 1.94. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $2.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.25, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.75. Kosmos Energy Ltd. has a 12-month low of $1.39 and a 12-month high of $6.33.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.01 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $397.66 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $387.60 million. Kosmos Energy had a net margin of 12.21% and a return on equity of 31.08%. On average, research analysts forecast that Kosmos Energy Ltd. will post 0.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kosmos Energy Profile

Kosmos Energy Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas along the Atlantic Margins in the United States. The company's primary assets include production projects located in offshore Ghana, Equatorial Guinea, and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, as well as gas projects located in offshore Mauritania and Senegal.