Gevo (NASDAQ:GEVO) Downgraded to "Sell" Rating by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Gevo has been downgraded from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating by Wall Street Zen, reflecting analysts' decreasing confidence in the stock's performance.
• Despite the downgrade, HC Wainwright maintains a "buy" rating for Gevo with a price target of $14, while the overall consensus rating remains a "Hold" with a price target of $7.58.
• Gevo recently reported earnings of $0.01 per share, beating estimates, but faced a negative net margin of 72.76%, raising concerns about its financial viability.

Gevo (NASDAQ:GEVO - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on GEVO. Zacks Research raised Gevo from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 13th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $14.00 target price on shares of Gevo in a research report on Friday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Gevo presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $7.58.

Gevo Price Performance

Shares of GEVO remained flat at $1.73 during mid-day trading on Friday. The stock had a trading volume of 2,762,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,413,692. The stock has a market capitalization of $418.38 million, a PE ratio of -6.65 and a beta of 2.67. The firm's 50 day moving average is $1.49 and its 200-day moving average is $1.33. Gevo has a 1 year low of $0.67 and a 1 year high of $3.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 2.10 and a current ratio of 2.33.

Gevo (NASDAQ:GEVO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The energy company reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.07. Gevo had a negative return on equity of 12.04% and a negative net margin of 72.76%.The firm had revenue of $43.41 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $43.69 million. Research analysts predict that Gevo will post -0.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Gevo

In other Gevo news, CEO Patrick R. Gruber sold 120,304 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.25, for a total value of $150,380.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 3,963,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,953,955. This trade represents a 2.95% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Paul D. Bloom sold 42,073 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.23, for a total transaction of $51,749.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,000,683 shares in the company, valued at $1,230,840.09. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 693,004 shares of company stock worth $924,403 in the last three months. 6.80% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Gevo by 104.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,623,004 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $7,424,000 after buying an additional 2,873,940 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gevo during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $904,000. Marshall Wace LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Gevo during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $812,000. Rhumbline Advisers purchased a new stake in shares of Gevo during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $383,000. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP raised its position in Gevo by 671.3% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 329,928 shares of the energy company's stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 287,150 shares during the period. 35.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Gevo

Gevo, Inc operates as a carbon abatement company. It operates through three segments: Gevo, Agri-Energy, and Renewable Natural Gas. The company focuses on transforming renewable energy into energy-dense liquid hydrocarbons that can be used as renewable fuels. It offers renewable gasoline and diesel, isobutanol, sustainable aviation fuel, renewable natural gas, isobutylene, ethanol, and animal feed and protein.