GeoPark Limited (NYSE:GPRK) Sees Large Decline in Short Interest

GeoPark Limited (NYSE:GPRK) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 972,800 shares, a decline of 16.1% from the August 15th total of 1,160,000 shares. Currently, 2.6% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 381,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of GeoPark from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 19th.

Institutional Trading of GeoPark

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GPRK. Aristides Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of GeoPark during the 2nd quarter valued at $286,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of GeoPark in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,929,000. Employees Retirement System of Texas purchased a new position in GeoPark in the 2nd quarter worth about $34,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC raised its holdings in 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 worth $35,550,000 after buying an additional 61,454 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in GeoPark by 3,251.7% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 379,483 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $4,139,000 after buying an additional 368,161 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.21% of the company’s stock.

GeoPark Stock Performance

GPRK stock traded down $0.08 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $7.75. 250,406 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 413,101. GeoPark has a 1-year low of $7.24 and a 1-year high of $11.25. The firm has a market cap of $428.52 million, a PE ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 1.32. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $9.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $9.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.83.

GeoPark (NYSE:GPRK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 14th. The oil and gas company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.30). GeoPark had a return on equity of 60.77% and a net margin of 14.28%. The company had revenue of $190.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $182.74 million. On average, research analysts expect that GeoPark will post 3.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

GeoPark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 29th were given a $0.147 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 29th. This represents a $0.59 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 7.59%. GeoPark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.43%.

About GeoPark

GeoPark Limited engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas reserves in Chile, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, and Ecuador. GeoPark Limited has a strategic partnership with ONGC Videsh to jointly acquire, invest in, and create value from upstream oil and gas projects across Latin America.