Traders Buy High Volume of Call Options on Geo Group (NYSE:GEO)

Geo Group Inc (The) (NYSE:GEO) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Stock investors acquired 32,245 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 488% compared to the average volume of 5,485 call options.

Geo Group Trading Down 13.5%

Shares of GEO opened at $13.25 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 1.62 and a current ratio of 2.01. The company has a market cap of $1.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.28 and a beta of 0.73. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $16.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.88. Geo Group has a 52-week low of $12.51 and a 52-week high of $32.09.

Geo Group (NYSE:GEO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25. Geo Group had a return on equity of 8.36% and a net margin of 9.67%.The company had revenue of $707.70 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $667.23 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.13 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Geo Group has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.170-0.190 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 0.990-1.070 EPS. Analysts predict that Geo Group will post 0.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on GEO shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Geo Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 9th. JonesTrading dropped their target price on Geo Group from $37.00 to $33.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Geo Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, December 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Geo Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $34.00.

Institutional Trading of Geo Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Geo Group by 2.5% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 18,056 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $432,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank boosted its position in Geo Group by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 39,088 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $936,000 after buying an additional 607 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its stake in shares of Geo Group by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,887 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 617 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Geo Group by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 26,333 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $424,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Geo Group by 245.1% during the second quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,101 shares of the real estate investment trust’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 782 shares during the last quarter. 76.10% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Geo Group Company Profile

The GEO Group (NYSE:GEO) is a leading provider of correctional, detention and community reentry services to government agencies around the world. As a real estate investment trust, the company specializes in the design, financing, development and operation of secure facilities for adult and juvenile offenders, immigration detainees and individuals requiring mental health treatment or substance abuse programming. GEO’s integrated service model also encompasses electronic monitoring, rehabilitative programming and post-release supervision aimed at reducing recidivism and enhancing public safety.

GEO’s portfolio spans a range of facility types, including medium- and maximum-security correctional institutions, residential reentry centers, mental health treatment units and immigration detention centers.