Geo Group (NYSE:GEO) Hits New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• GEO Group shares reached a new 52-week high, trading as high as $32.71 and gaining 3.5% from the previous close.
• Analyst sentiment is generally positive: the stock has an average “Buy” rating and a $40 price target, although one analyst downgraded it to “Hold.”
• The company exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.37 in EPS versus a $0.29 consensus estimate and $732.1 million in revenue, up 15.1% year over year. Institutional investors own 76.1% of the stock.

Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $32.71 and last traded at $32.70, with a volume of 1143202 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $31.72.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on GEO shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded Geo Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 9th. Noble Financial restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Geo Group in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Zacks Research raised shares of Geo Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 20th. JonesTrading increased their target price on shares of Geo Group from $33.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Geo Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $40.00.

Geo Group Trading Up 3.5%

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 firm has a market capitalization of $4.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 0.79. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $30.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.63.

Geo Group (NYSE:GEO - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.37 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $732.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $721.43 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.22 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Geo Group Inc will post 1.31 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Geo Group

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Two Sigma Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Geo Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $568,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its stake in Geo Group by 5,260.4% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 200,479 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $5,924,000 after purchasing an additional 196,739 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio purchased a new stake in Geo Group during the second quarter valued at about $126,000. Corient Private Wealth LP purchased a new position in shares of Geo Group in the second quarter worth about $281,000. Finally, Park West Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Geo Group in the second quarter worth about $22,461,000. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Geo Group Company 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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