GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK) Shares Down 4.4% – Time to Sell?

GeoPark Limited (NYSE:GPRK) shares fell 4.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $10.89 and last traded at $10.90. 530,020 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 847,592 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on GPRK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on GeoPark from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. StockNews.com raised shares of GeoPark from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, January 5th.

GeoPark Stock Down 5.7 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $9.69 and a 200 day moving average of $9.17. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53. The firm has a market cap of $550.05 million, a P/E ratio of 5.46 and a beta of 1.35.

GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas company reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $159.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $156.99 million. GeoPark had a net margin of 14.97% and a return on equity of 57.93%. On average, equities research analysts predict that GeoPark Limited will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

GeoPark Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 21st were issued a dividend of $0.147 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.59 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.47%. GeoPark’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.44%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On GeoPark

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of GPRK. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in shares of GeoPark in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Armstrong Fleming & Moore Inc lifted its stake in GeoPark by 2.7% in the third quarter. Armstrong Fleming & Moore Inc now owns 187,726 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $1,477,000 after buying an additional 4,859 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. acquired a new position in shares of GeoPark in the third quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new stake in shares of GeoPark during the third quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of GeoPark by 392.3% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,974 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $71,000 after acquiring an additional 7,151 shares during the period. 68.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About GeoPark

GeoPark Limited operates as an oil and natural gas exploration and production company primarily in Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador, and other Latin American countries. It engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas reserves. The company was formerly known as GeoPark Holdings Limited and changed its name to GeoPark Limited in July 2013.