The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) Shares Down 4.9% – Should You Sell?

Shares of The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE:GEO) dropped 4.9% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $29.29 and last traded at $29.51. Approximately 1,377,757 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 3,013,622 shares. The stock had previously closed at $31.01.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on GEO. Northland Securities increased their target price on The GEO Group from $16.00 to $37.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Noble Financial cut The GEO Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of The GEO Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th.

The GEO Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The company has a 50-day moving average of $29.55 and a 200-day moving average of $20.36. The stock has a market cap of $4.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 108.49, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.87.

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.21 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.24 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $603.13 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $611.69 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 prior year, the business earned $0.19 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that The GEO Group, Inc. will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On The GEO Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp lifted its position in The GEO Group by 1.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,919,298 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $63,213,000 after buying an additional 66,658 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in The GEO Group by 3.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,016,103 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $38,765,000 after purchasing an additional 97,452 shares during the period. Philosophy Capital Management LLC lifted its position in The GEO Group by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. Philosophy Capital Management LLC now owns 1,644,005 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $21,125,000 after acquiring an additional 240,251 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in The GEO Group by 91.9% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 859,528 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $24,050,000 after purchasing an additional 411,565 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hodges Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in The GEO Group by 1,501.6% during the 3rd quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 788,800 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $10,136,000 after purchasing an additional 739,550 shares in the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.