Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Stock Price Down 6.8% – Here’s Why

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) shares dropped 6.8% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $2.33 and last traded at $2.33. 6,279,519 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 21,324,445 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.50.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded shares of Kosmos Energy to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Weiss Ratings cut Kosmos Energy from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Johnson Rice raised Kosmos Energy from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4.25 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 25th. Mizuho restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $3.00 target price (up from $2.00) on shares of Kosmos Energy in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Kosmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kosmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $2.44.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a PE ratio of -1.46, a PEG ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 0.68. The business’s 50-day moving average is $2.84 and its 200-day moving average is $2.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.56, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.60.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.07) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.15). Kosmos Energy had a negative return on equity of 37.60% and a negative net margin of 59.38%.The business had revenue of $370.73 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $405.21 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Kosmos Energy Ltd. will post 0.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Steven Sterin sold 38,636 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.73, for a total value of $105,476.28. Following the sale, the director owned 331,295 shares in the company, valued at $904,435.35. This represents a 10.44% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director John Douglas Kelso Grant sold 43,466 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.73, for a total value of $118,662.18. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 82,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $224,709.03. This trade represents a 34.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 125,568 shares of company stock worth $342,801 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kosmos Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 175.2% in the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,766,857 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $6,140,000 after purchasing an additional 4,308,275 shares during the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its stake in Kosmos Energy by 224.0% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 5,339,638 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $14,844,000 after buying an additional 3,691,800 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 66.9% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 7,048,196 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $6,396,000 after buying an additional 2,825,517 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 333.0% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 3,221,011 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,540,000 after buying an additional 2,477,102 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 19.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,045,593 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $10,930,000 after buying an additional 1,962,936 shares during the last quarter. 95.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Kosmos Energy

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.