Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) Trading Up 6.7% – Time to Buy?

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) shares traded up 6.7% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $2.26 and last traded at $2.24. 5,059,841 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average session volume of 20,924,328 shares. The stock had previously closed at $2.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KOS has been the subject of several research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Kosmos Energy from a “sell (d)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Kosmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Johnson Rice upgraded shares of Kosmos Energy from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4.25 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Mizuho reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $3.00 target price (up from $2.00) on shares of Kosmos Energy in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada downgraded shares of Kosmos Energy to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Two 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $2.44.

Kosmos Energy Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.24 and a beta of 0.71. The company’s 50 day moving average is $2.67 and its 200 day moving average is $2.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.56.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.07) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.15). Kosmos Energy had a negative net margin of 59.38% and a negative return on equity of 37.60%. The business had revenue of $370.73 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $405.21 million. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Kosmos Energy Ltd. will post 0.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kosmos Energy

In other news, CFO Nealesh D. Shah sold 45,980 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.05, for a total transaction of $94,259.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 1,935,410 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,967,590.50. This represents a 2.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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, SVP Josh R. Marion sold 24,969 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.05, for a total value of $51,186.45. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 233,404 shares in the company, valued at approximately $478,478.20. This trade represents a 9.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. Insiders have sold a total of 294,580 shares of company stock valued at $689,275 over the last ninety days. 1.90% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KOS. Captrust Financial Advisors grew its stake in Kosmos Energy by 93.9% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 28,601 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 13,854 shares in the last quarter. Old Port Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Kosmos Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in Kosmos Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Kestra Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Kosmos Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Caerus Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Kosmos Energy during the first quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.