The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) Stock Price Down 5.7% – Should You Sell?

The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE:GEO) dropped 5.7% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $33.35 and last traded at $32.89. Approximately 389,884 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 2,950,796 shares. The stock had previously closed at $34.87.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on GEO shares. Noble Financial downgraded The GEO Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of The GEO Group in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Finally, Northland Securities raised their price target on shares of The GEO Group from $16.00 to $37.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th.

The GEO Group Trading Down 1.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $29.23 and a 200-day simple moving average of $19.88. The firm has a market cap of $4.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 114.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.87.

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $603.13 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $611.69 million. The GEO Group had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 2.00%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.19 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that The GEO Group, Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The GEO Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in The GEO Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Sound Income Strategies LLC boosted its stake in shares of The GEO Group by 472.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 3,181 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 2,625 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of The GEO Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of The GEO Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $77,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in The GEO Group by 37.2% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 6,023 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $169,000 after acquiring an additional 1,632 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

About The GEO Group

The GEO Group, Inc (NYSE: GEO) engages in ownership, leasing, and management of secure facilities, processing centers, and community-based reentry facilities in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. The company also provides secure facility management services, including the provision of security, administrative, rehabilitation, education, and food services; reentry services, such as temporary housing, programming, employment assistance, and other services; electronic monitoring and supervision services; and transportation services; as well as designs, constructs, and finances new facilities through projects.