Wedbush Raises The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) Price Target to $30.00

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO - Get Free Report) had its price target boosted by investment analysts at Wedbush from $25.00 to $30.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an "outperform" rating on the real estate investment trust's stock. Wedbush's price target suggests a potential upside of 18.25% from the company's previous close.

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of The GEO Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th.

The GEO Group Stock Up 3.8 %

Shares of GEO stock traded up $0.94 on Friday, reaching $25.37. 8,123,129 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,619,187. The GEO Group has a twelve month low of $9.09 and a twelve month high of $25.88. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The company has a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 96.70, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.63. The business's 50 day moving average price is $14.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $14.17.

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.25 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $607.19 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $606.16 million. The GEO Group had a net margin of 1.92% and a return on equity of 8.87%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.24 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The GEO Group will post 0.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other The GEO Group news, Chairman George C. Zoley acquired 100,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.33 per share, with a total value of $1,233,000.00. Following the transaction, the chairman now owns 3,900,904 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $48,098,146.32. This trade represents a 0.00 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of The GEO Group by 2.5% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 35,525 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $510,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares during the period. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of The GEO Group by 9.0% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 11,096 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $143,000 after acquiring an additional 919 shares during the period. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of The GEO Group by 1.1% in the second quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 100,735 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $1,447,000 after acquiring an additional 1,098 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in shares of The GEO Group by 3.1% during the first quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 39,703 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $561,000 after acquiring an additional 1,197 shares during the period. Finally, Texas Permanent School Fund Corp increased its stake in shares of The GEO Group by 1.3% during the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 106,826 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $1,508,000 after acquiring an additional 1,402 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

The GEO Group Company Profile

The GEO Group, Inc NYSE: GEO engages in ownership, leasing, and management of secure facilities, processing centers, and community-based reentry facilities in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. The company also provides secure facility management services, including the provision of security, administrative, rehabilitation, education, and food services; reentry services, such as temporary housing, programming, employment assistance, and other services; electronic monitoring and supervision services; and transportation services; as well as designs, constructs, and finances new facilities through projects.