Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Upgraded by Johnson Rice to “Buy” Rating

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) was upgraded by investment analysts at Johnson Rice from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a $4.25 price target on the oil and gas producer’s stock. Johnson Rice’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 56.25% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on KOS. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $1.00 price objective (down from $3.40) on shares of Kosmos Energy in a report on Friday, December 5th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a report on Monday, December 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of Kosmos Energy from $1.70 to $0.80 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Mizuho cut 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 report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.19.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KOS opened at $2.72 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1.91 and its 200 day moving average is $1.55. The stock has a market cap of $1.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.40 and a beta of 0.76. Kosmos Energy has a 1-year low of $0.84 and a 1-year high of $3.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.16) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.14) by ($0.02). Kosmos Energy had a negative return on equity of 39.29% and a negative net margin of 54.18%.The firm had revenue of $294.62 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $323.46 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kosmos Energy will post 0.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Adebayo O. Ogunlesi bought 3,157,895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $1.90 per share, with a total value of $6,000,000.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 4,974,184 shares in the company, valued at $9,450,949.60. This represents a 173.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Josh R. Marion sold 19,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the senior vice president owned 197,409 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $270,450.33. This represents a 9.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 3,684,210 shares of company stock valued at $6,999,999 and have sold 272,844 shares valued at $377,592. 2.02% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kosmos Energy

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its position in Kosmos Energy by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 24,634 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 7,169 shares in the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 18.8% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 57,782 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $99,000 after acquiring an additional 9,159 shares in the last quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. boosted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 30.3% in the fourth quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 45,539 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 10,598 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 35.7% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 42,577 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 11,209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 4.5% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 278,082 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $634,000 after acquiring an additional 12,045 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.33% of the company’s stock.

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.