The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wedbush Analyst Says

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) had its price target boosted by equities researchers at Wedbush from $25.00 to $30.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “outperform” rating on the real estate investment trust’s stock. Wedbush’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 18.30% from the stock’s current price. Wedbush also issued estimates for The GEO Group’s Q4 2024 earnings at $0.20 EPS, FY2024 earnings at $0.82 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $0.21 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $0.28 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $1.15 EPS.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded The GEO Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th.

The GEO Group Stock Up 3.8 %

GEO traded up $0.93 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $25.36. 8,126,852 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,060,947. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a PE ratio of 87.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.63. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.23. The GEO Group has a one year low of $9.09 and a one year high of $25.88.

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.25 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $607.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $606.16 million. The GEO Group had a net margin of 2.00% and a return on equity of 9.20%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.24 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that The GEO Group will post 0.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at The GEO Group

In other The GEO Group news, Chairman George C. Zoley acquired 100,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $12.33 per share, with a total value of $1,233,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 3,900,904 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $48,098,146.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 5.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On The GEO Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its holdings in shares of The GEO Group by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,114,771 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $16,008,000 after purchasing an additional 49,134 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in The GEO Group by 131.8% in the 2nd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,037,881 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $14,904,000 after acquiring an additional 590,099 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of The GEO Group by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 656,596 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $9,429,000 after acquiring an additional 22,969 shares during the period. Center Lake Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of The GEO Group by 500.0% during the 1st quarter. Center Lake Capital Management LLC now owns 600,000 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $8,472,000 after purchasing an additional 500,000 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beaconlight Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of The GEO Group in the first quarter valued at $5,754,000. Institutional investors own 76.10% of the company’s stock.

The GEO Group Company Profile

The GEO Group, Inc (NYSE: GEO) engages in ownership, leasing, and management of secure facilities, processing centers, and community-based reentry facilities in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. The company also provides secure facility management services, including the provision of security, administrative, rehabilitation, education, and food services; reentry services, such as temporary housing, programming, employment assistance, and other services; electronic monitoring and supervision services; and transportation services; as well as designs, constructs, and finances new facilities through projects.