Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 35,855,920 shares, a drop of 26.1% from the February 26th total of 48,510,803 shares. Currently, 7.6% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 43,082,346 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Kosmos Energy Trading Up 1.4%

NYSE:KOS traded up $0.04 on Friday, hitting $2.91. 28,651,038 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 38,196,260. The stock has a market cap of $1.40 billion, a PE ratio of -1.99, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $2.00 and a 200-day moving average of $1.57. Kosmos Energy has a fifty-two week low of $0.84 and a fifty-two week high of $3.01.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Saturday, February 14th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter. Kosmos Energy had a negative net margin of 54.18% and a negative return on equity of 39.29%. The firm had revenue of $294.62 million during the quarter. As a group, equities analysts expect that Kosmos Energy will post 0.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KOS shares. Bank of America reissued an “underperform” rating and set a $1.00 price objective (down from $3.40) on shares of Kosmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Mizuho cut their price target on Kosmos Energy from $2.00 to $1.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Kosmos Energy from $1.70 to $0.80 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Johnson Rice upgraded Kosmos Energy from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $4.25 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kosmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2.19.

Insider Transactions at Kosmos Energy

In other news, Director Adebayo O. Ogunlesi purchased 3,157,895 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $1.90 per share, with a total value of $6,000,000.50. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 4,974,184 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,450,949.60. This trade represents a 173.87% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Nealesh D. Shah purchased 157,894 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $1.90 per share, with a total value of $299,998.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 1,863,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,539,815.90. This represents a 9.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 3,684,210 shares of company stock worth $6,999,999 and have sold 272,844 shares worth $377,592. Company insiders own 1.99% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Kosmos Energy by 41.6% during the second quarter. Equinox Partners Investment Management LLC now owns 18,671,480 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $32,115,000 after buying an additional 5,485,000 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 175.2% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 6,766,857 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $6,140,000 after acquiring an additional 4,308,275 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Kosmos Energy by 66.9% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 7,048,196 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $6,396,000 after acquiring an additional 2,825,517 shares during the period. Squarepoint Ops LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 333.0% during the 2nd quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 3,221,011 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $5,540,000 after acquiring an additional 2,477,102 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&G PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. M&G PLC now owns 7,978,144 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $13,244,000 after acquiring an additional 2,210,302 shares in the last quarter. 95.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kosmos Energy Company Profile

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.