Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR) Shares Gap Down – Should You Sell?

Gulfport Energy Corporation (NYSE:GPOR)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $207.99, but opened at $203.28. Gulfport Energy shares last traded at $204.90, with a volume of 3,825 shares.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on GPOR. Roth Capital began coverage on shares of Gulfport Energy in a research note on Monday, October 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $200.00 target price for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Gulfport Energy from $190.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Gulfport Energy in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Gulfport Energy from $205.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Gulfport Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $230.88.

Gulfport Energy Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.90 billion, a P/E ratio of -106.35 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a fifty day moving average of $205.53 and a 200-day moving average of $188.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Gulfport Energy (NYSE:GPOR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The company reported $3.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.64 by ($1.51). The firm had revenue of $379.75 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $343.18 million. Gulfport Energy had a return on equity of 20.95% and a net margin of 1.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gulfport Energy

In other news, Director Timothy J. Cutt sold 2,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $210.45, for a total transaction of $554,535.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 35,473 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,465,292.85. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director David D. Wolf sold 1,525 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $210.27, for a total transaction of $320,661.75. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $938,224.74. The trade was a 25.47% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 296,695 shares of company stock worth $65,092,132 in the last quarter. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in Gulfport Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Financial Consulate Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Gulfport Energy in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its position in shares of Gulfport Energy by 133.7% in the third quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Gulfport Energy by 364.8% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Finally, Toth Financial Advisory Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Gulfport Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $85,000.

About Gulfport Energy

Gulfport Energy Corporation is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The company focuses on the development of onshore natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil properties in the United States. Gulfport utilizes horizontal drilling and multi-stage hydraulic fracturing techniques to maximize production and enhance recovery from its resource plays.

The company’s primary operations are concentrated in two major U.S. resource basins.