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

Kosmos Energy Ltd. (NYSE:KOS) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 38,620,000 shares, an increase of 8.7% from the March 15th total of 35,520,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 7,890,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.9 days.

Insider Activity at Kosmos Energy

In related news, CEO Andrew G. Inglis sold 166,524 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.03, for a total value of $1,004,139.72. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,909,135 shares in the company, valued at $23,572,084.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Kosmos Energy news, CEO Andrew G. Inglis sold 166,524 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.03, for a total value of $1,004,139.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 3,909,135 shares in the company, valued at $23,572,084.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Ronald W. Glass sold 17,525 shares of Kosmos Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $6.03, for a total value of $105,675.75. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 290,855 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,753,855.65. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 335,337 shares of company stock valued at $2,022,082 in the last 90 days. 1.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Kosmos Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KOS. Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Kosmos Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $5,819,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kosmos Energy by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,715,994 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $85,324,000 after buying an additional 540,706 shares during the last quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Kosmos Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $107,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in Kosmos Energy by 31.6% during the fourth quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,201,036 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $21,479,000 after purchasing an additional 769,037 shares during the period. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Kosmos Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $79,000. 95.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. TheStreet downgraded Kosmos Energy from a “b” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. StockNews.com raised Kosmos Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $9.63.

Kosmos Energy Stock Performance

KOS traded up $0.04 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $6.09. 8,193,635 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,756,466. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.83, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 2.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.32. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $5.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $6.47. Kosmos Energy has a 52-week low of $5.23 and a 52-week high of $8.28.

Kosmos Energy (NYSE:KOS) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 26th. The oil and gas producer reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.08. Kosmos Energy had a net margin of 12.55% and a return on equity of 39.94%. The company had revenue of $507.81 million during the quarter. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Kosmos Energy will post 0.75 EPS for the current year.

About Kosmos Energy

Kosmos Energy Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, and production of oil and gas along the Atlantic Margins in the United States. The company's primary assets include production projects located in offshore Ghana, Equatorial Guinea, and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, as well as gas projects located in offshore Mauritania and Senegal.