Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS)

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Thursday. Stock investors acquired 33,569 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 785% compared to the typical daily volume of 3,791 call options.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

Shares of KOS stock opened at $1.59 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $758.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -2.33 and a beta of 0.89. Kosmos Energy has a one year low of $0.84 and a one year high of $3.49. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $1.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.04, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, November 4th. The oil and gas producer reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13) by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $310.96 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $360.82 million. Kosmos Energy had a negative return on equity of 26.28% and a negative net margin of 23.64%. Equities analysts anticipate that Kosmos Energy will post 0.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on KOS shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Kosmos Energy in a report on Monday, December 29th. Johnson Rice cut Kosmos Energy from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $4.50 to $3.50 in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Bank of America reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $1.00 target price (down previously from $3.40) on shares of Kosmos Energy in a research note on Friday, December 5th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Kosmos Energy from $2.00 to $1.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Kosmos Energy from $1.75 to $2.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kosmos Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.08.

Institutional Trading of Kosmos Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC boosted its position in Kosmos Energy by 34.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 27,089 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 6,888 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Kosmos Energy by 41.0% in the third quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 24,634 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 7,169 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio boosted its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 53.2% during the second quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 24,103 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 8,371 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 18.8% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 57,782 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $99,000 after acquiring an additional 9,159 shares during the period. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its position in shares of Kosmos Energy by 43.4% during the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 39,364 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $68,000 after acquiring an additional 11,916 shares during the last quarter. 95.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Kosmos Energy

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.