Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS)’s share price gapped down before the market opened on Tuesday . The stock had previously closed at $2.86, but opened at $2.75. Kosmos Energy shares last traded at $2.72, with a volume of 1,099,032 shares.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have commented on KOS shares. Mizuho raised shares of Kosmos Energy to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Kosmos Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded Kosmos Energy to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Stephens dropped their target price on Kosmos Energy from $3.00 to $2.40 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $2.53.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $2.43 and its 200-day moving average is $2.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.35, a PEG ratio of 0.20 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.59.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $0.02. Kosmos Energy had a negative net margin of 33.98% and a negative return on equity of 17.73%. The company had revenue of $607.25 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $483.23 million. Analysts forecast that Kosmos Energy Ltd. will post 0.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kosmos Energy

In other news, CEO Andrew G. Inglis sold 85,935 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.05, for a total transaction of $176,166.75. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,678,043 shares in the company, valued at $9,589,988.15. This trade represents a 1.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CFO Nealesh D. Shah sold 45,980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.05, for a total value of $94,259.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 1,935,410 shares in the company, valued at $3,967,590.50. This trade represents a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 169,012 shares of company stock valued at $346,475 in the last ninety days. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kosmos Energy

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Kosmos Energy by 56.7% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 387,739 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $884,000 after buying an additional 140,261 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 4.5% in the 1st 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 in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 21.1% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 2,541,006 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,793,000 after acquiring an additional 443,384 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Kosmos Energy during the first quarter worth $120,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers raised its position in Kosmos Energy by 7.9% during the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 718,954 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 52,750 shares during the period. 95.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.