Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR) Raised to "Outperform" at Mizuho

Key Points

• Mizuho upgraded Gulfport Energy from “neutral” to “outperform” and nudged its price target to $252, implying about 45.9% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive overall, with the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $230.22, though some firms have recently trimmed targets or lowered ratings.
• Gulfport Energy reported mixed latest results: quarterly EPS of $5.60 narrowly missed estimates, while revenue of $398.19 million beat expectations; the company also saw notable insider selling in recent months.

Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Mizuho from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage presently has a $252.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $251.00. Mizuho's target price would suggest a potential upside of 45.88% from the stock's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on GPOR. Truist Financial decreased their price target on Gulfport Energy from $230.00 to $219.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Gulfport Energy from $228.00 to $229.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 16th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Gulfport Energy from $260.00 to $245.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Gulfport Energy from $215.00 to $237.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded Gulfport Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gulfport Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $230.22.

Gulfport Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GPOR opened at $172.75 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $194.22 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $199.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.46. Gulfport Energy has a 1 year low of $160.95 and a 1 year high of $225.78.

Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $5.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $5.61 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $398.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $373.24 million. Gulfport Energy had a net margin of 35.72% and a return on equity of 23.51%. Research analysts forecast that Gulfport Energy will post 24.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Timothy J. Cutt sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $208.73, for a total value of $1,043,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 26,255 shares in the company, valued at $5,480,206.15. This represents a 16.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Michael L. Hodges sold 16,769 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.70, for a total value of $3,533,228.30. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 18,473 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,892,261.10. The trade was a 47.58% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 876,258 shares of company stock valued at $179,141,707. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Gulfport Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of GPOR. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Gulfport Energy by 4,946.1% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 467,419 shares of the company's stock valued at $98,892,000 after purchasing an additional 458,156 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gulfport Energy by 1,281.6% in the third quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 426,034 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,104,000 after purchasing an additional 395,197 shares in the last quarter. Goldentree Asset Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Gulfport Energy in the third quarter valued at $44,665,000. Ninepoint Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of Gulfport Energy in the fourth quarter worth $41,598,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Gulfport Energy by 50.3% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 527,393 shares of the company's stock worth $109,692,000 after acquiring an additional 176,386 shares during the last quarter.

Gulfport Energy Company Profile

Gulfport Energy Corporation is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the development of onshore natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil properties in the United States. Gulfport utilizes horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing techniques to maximize production and enhance recovery from its resource plays.

The company's primary operations are concentrated in two major U.S. resource basins.

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