Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Strong-Buy Rating

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report report published on Saturday,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on KOS. Mizuho upgraded shares of Kosmos Energy to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered shares of Kosmos Energy to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Stephens reduced their price objective on Kosmos Energy from $3.00 to $2.40 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $2.53.

Kosmos Energy Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE KOS opened at $2.79 on Friday. Kosmos Energy has a one year low of $0.84 and a one year high of $3.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.58, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $2.51 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.34, a PEG ratio of 0.21 and a beta of 0.73.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The oil and gas producer reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $607.25 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $483.23 million. As a group, analysts expect that Kosmos Energy will post 0.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Kosmos Energy

In other news, CFO Nealesh Shah sold 45,980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $2.05, for a total value of $94,259.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 1,935,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,967,590.50. This trade represents a 2.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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, CEO Andrew Inglis sold 85,935 shares of Kosmos Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.05, for a total transaction of $176,166.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 4,678,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,589,988.15. The trade was a 1.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 169,012 shares of company stock worth $346,475. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kosmos Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KOS. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 14.2% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,541,020 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $15,404,000 after purchasing an additional 689,800 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 321.9% in the 2nd quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 525,378 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,109,000 after buying an additional 400,842 shares during the period. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Kosmos Energy by 6.2% in the 1st quarter. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC now owns 20,678,033 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $57,485,000 after buying an additional 1,208,053 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Kosmos Energy by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,083,075 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $19,699,000 after buying an additional 1,204,789 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Kosmos Energy by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 7,694,248 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $21,390,000 after buying an additional 646,052 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.33% of the company’s stock.

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.