Geopark Ltd (NYSE:GPRK) Short Interest Update

Geopark Ltd (NYSE:GPRK) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 1,183,317 shares, a growth of 47.3% from the March 31st total of 803,366 shares. Approximately 2.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 1,422,978 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Insider Activity at Geopark

In other news, Director James Franklin Park sold 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.83, for a total value of $883,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 912,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,054,001.94. This represents a 9.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Institutional Trading of Geopark

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. VR Advisory Services Ltd increased its position in Geopark by 370.9% during the 4th quarter. VR Advisory Services Ltd now owns 1,105,201 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $8,190,000 after purchasing an additional 870,516 shares during the period. UBS Group AG grew its position in shares of Geopark by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 988,754 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $7,327,000 after buying an additional 7,623 shares during the period. Vennlight Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Geopark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,854,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Geopark by 41.6% during the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 619,822 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,948,000 after buying an additional 182,039 shares during the period. Finally, Aventail Capital Group LP acquired a new stake in shares of Geopark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,164,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on GPRK shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Geopark to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 1st. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $11.50 price objective on shares of Geopark in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Geopark from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $11.50.

Geopark Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE:GPRK traded up $0.18 on Thursday, reaching $9.69. 200,610 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 968,049. The firm has a market capitalization of $501.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.36 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day moving average is $9.02 and its 200-day moving average is $8.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. Geopark has a 1-year low of $5.75 and a 1-year high of $10.34.

Geopark (NYSE:GPRK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The oil and gas company reported $999.00 earnings per share for the quarter. Geopark had a net margin of 10.09% and a return on equity of 39.05%.

Geopark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.03 per share. This represents a $0.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 11th. Geopark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 12.77%.

About Geopark

Geopark Ltd. (NYSE:GPRK) is an independent oil and gas exploration and production company focused on Latin America. Founded in 2002 and with corporate offices in Canada and regional headquarters in Bogotá, Colombia, Geopark pursues the discovery and development of unconventional and conventional hydrocarbon resources. The company’s strategy emphasizes asset consolidation in established basins alongside disciplined capital allocation to maximize production efficiency.

The company’s core operations are centered in Colombia’s Llanos Basin, where it holds interests in several producing blocks that deliver light crude oil to local and export markets.