Geopark Ltd (NYSE:GPRK) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Geopark Ltd experienced a 36.5% increase in short interest from July 15th to July 31st, with approximately 7.5% of the company's stock currently short sold.
• The company reported $0.27 earnings per share for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.15, despite a slight revenue shortfall against consensus estimates.
• Geopark announced a quarterly dividend of $0.147, representing a yield of 9.6%, to be paid on September 4th.

Geopark Ltd (NYSE:GPRK - Get Free Report) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totaling 2,430,000 shares, anincreaseof36.5% from the July 15th total of 1,780,000 shares. Approximately7.5% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 855,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 855,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.8 days. Approximately7.5% of the shares of the company are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Geopark from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $11.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Geopark

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Marex Group plc acquired a new position in shares of Geopark in the 2nd quarter valued at about $815,000. Militia Capital Partners LP raised its stake in Geopark by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Militia Capital Partners LP now owns 299,000 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $1,949,000 after acquiring an additional 8,553 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Geopark by 6.0% in the second quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 66,288 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $432,000 after acquiring an additional 3,742 shares in the last quarter. Group One Trading LLC purchased a new stake in Geopark during the second quarter worth about $168,000. Finally, Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its stake in shares of Geopark by 92.8% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 221,832 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $1,446,000 after buying an additional 106,774 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.21% of the company's stock.

Geopark Trading Down 2.8%

Geopark stock traded down $0.1850 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $6.4350. The stock had a trading volume of 368,112 shares, compared to its average volume of 690,399. The stock has a market capitalization of $329.79 million, a PE ratio of 7.75 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.47, a quick ratio of 2.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $6.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.17. Geopark has a 12 month low of $5.66 and a 12 month high of $11.72.

Geopark (NYSE:GPRK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The oil and gas company reported $0.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $119.80 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $123.00 million. Geopark had a return on equity of 35.65% and a net margin of 7.70%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Geopark will post 1.97 EPS for the current year.

Geopark Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 19th will be given a $0.147 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 19th. This represents a $0.59 annualized dividend and a yield of 9.1%. Geopark's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.08%.

About Geopark

GeoPark Limited operates as an oil and natural gas exploration and production company primarily in Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, and other Latin American countries. It engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas reserves. The company was formerly known as GeoPark Holdings Limited and changed its name to GeoPark Limited in July 2013.