GeoPark Limited (NYSE:GPRK) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

GeoPark Limited (NYSE:GPRK) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 1,010,000 shares, an increase of 33.5% from the December 15th total of 756,700 shares. Currently, 2.7% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 520,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.9 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GPRK. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on GeoPark from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com downgraded GeoPark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday.

GeoPark Stock Down 2.6 %

Shares of NYSE:GPRK opened at $10.48 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53. The company has a 50 day moving average of $9.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $9.18. The company has a market capitalization of $535.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 5.32 and a beta of 1.35. GeoPark has a 52-week low of $7.24 and a 52-week high of $11.72.

GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $159.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $156.99 million. GeoPark had a return on equity of 57.93% and a net margin of 14.97%. As a group, analysts forecast that GeoPark will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

GeoPark Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were given a $0.147 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.59 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.61%. GeoPark’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.95%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GeoPark

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of GeoPark by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,246,617 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $35,550,000 after purchasing an additional 61,454 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in GeoPark by 77.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 366,380 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $2,883,000 after acquiring an additional 159,861 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC bought a new stake in GeoPark in the third quarter worth about $2,834,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in GeoPark in the second quarter worth about $2,929,000. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP lifted its holdings in GeoPark by 61.7% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 216,084 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,701,000 after acquiring an additional 82,459 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.21% of the company’s stock.

GeoPark Company Profile

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.