Cannell & Spears LLC Invests $693,000 in The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE:GEO)

Cannell & Spears LLC acquired a new stake in The GEO Group, Inc. (NYSE:GEO) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 24,765 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock, valued at approximately $693,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in shares of The GEO Group during the fourth quarter worth about $17,685,000. Level Four Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in The GEO Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $228,000. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lifted its position in The GEO Group by 7.6% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 19,892 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $557,000 after buying an additional 1,397 shares during the last quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of The GEO Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $590,000. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of The GEO Group by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 13,314 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $373,000 after buying an additional 1,030 shares during the period. 76.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at The GEO Group

In other The GEO Group news, EVP Shayn P. March sold 7,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.00, for a total value of $225,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 67,469 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,024,070. This trade represents a 10.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 5.30% of the company’s stock.

The GEO Group Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE GEO opened at $29.28 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $28.08 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.44. The GEO Group, Inc. has a one year low of $11.75 and a one year high of $36.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 100.98, a PEG ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.91.

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 27th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.21 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $607.72 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $607.45 million. The GEO Group had a return on equity of 9.20% and a net margin of 2.00%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that The GEO Group, Inc. will post 0.83 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Jones Trading restated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of The GEO Group in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Noble Financial restated an “outperform” rating on shares of The GEO Group in a research report on Monday, March 24th. StockNews.com cut The GEO Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group set a $35.00 price objective on shares of The GEO Group in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Finally, Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $46.00 price target on shares of The GEO Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, The GEO Group presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.00.

About The GEO Group

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.