GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK - Free Report) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning.

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on GeoPark from $12.00 to $11.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th.

GeoPark Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of GPRK stock traded down $0.29 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $10.95. 599,833 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 422,441. The stock has a market cap of $560.20 million, a PE ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 1.37. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $8.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $9.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.53. GeoPark has a 12 month low of $7.24 and a 12 month high of $11.72.

GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The oil and gas company reported $0.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.59 by ($0.11). GeoPark had a return on equity of 57.93% and a net margin of 14.97%. The company had revenue of $159.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $156.99 million. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that GeoPark will post 2.56 EPS for the current year.

GeoPark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 21st were issued a $0.147 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.59 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.37%. GeoPark's payout ratio is 29.95%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of GeoPark by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,246,617 shares of the oil and gas company's stock valued at $35,550,000 after purchasing an additional 61,454 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of GeoPark by 3,251.7% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 379,483 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $4,139,000 after buying an additional 368,161 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of GeoPark by 77.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 366,380 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $2,883,000 after buying an additional 159,861 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC acquired a new stake in shares of GeoPark during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,834,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp bought a new stake in shares of GeoPark in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,929,000. 68.21% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

GeoPark Company Profile

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.