Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Kosmos Energy from a "sell" to a "hold," and the Street consensus remains a Hold with a consensus price target of $2.19.
• Shares opened at $2.93 (near a 52-week high of $3.02) with a market cap of $1.41 billion, but the company shows negative EPS and a high debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53, indicating financial strain.
• CEO Andrew G. Inglis purchased 315,790 shares at $1.90 (~$600k), insiders were net buyers of ~3.68M shares (~$7M) over 90 days, while institutional investors own roughly 95% of the stock.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Kosmos Energy from $2.00 to $1.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Kosmos Energy from $1.75 to $2.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a report on Monday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on Kosmos Energy from $1.70 to $0.80 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Johnson Rice raised Kosmos Energy from an "accumulate" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $4.25 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $2.19.

Kosmos Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KOS opened at $2.93 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.65. The company's 50-day moving average is $2.16 and its 200 day moving average is $1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.75. Kosmos Energy has a fifty-two week low of $0.84 and a fifty-two week high of $3.02.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, February 14th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $294.62 million for the quarter. Kosmos Energy had a negative return on equity of 39.29% and a negative net margin of 54.18%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Kosmos Energy will post 0.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kosmos Energy

In other news, CEO Andrew G. Inglis acquired 315,790 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $1.90 per share, for a total transaction of $600,001.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 4,542,807 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,631,333.30. The trade was a 7.47% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Josh R. Marion sold 19,656 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.37, for a total transaction of $26,928.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 197,409 shares of the company's stock, valued at $270,450.33. This trade represents a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 3,684,210 shares of company stock worth $6,999,999 and have sold 272,844 shares worth $377,592. 1.99% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kosmos Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KOS. Alpine Global Management LLC bought a new position in Kosmos Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $188,000. Aristides Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Kosmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth $179,000. XTX Topco Ltd raised its position in shares of Kosmos Energy by 500.6% in the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 914,037 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $829,000 after buying an additional 761,861 shares in the last quarter. Numerai GP LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kosmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth $69,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in Kosmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $140,000. 95.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kosmos Energy Company Profile

Kosmos Energy Ltd. is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Since its founding in 2003, the company has focused on identifying and developing hydrocarbon reserves in frontier and emerging basins around the world. Kosmos combines geological and geophysical expertise with a disciplined approach to acreage acquisition and partner selection to pursue high‐impact offshore exploration opportunities.

The company's portfolio is anchored by assets in West Africa and the Gulf of Mexico.

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