Bandwidth (NASDAQ:BAND) Hits New 1-Year High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Bandwidth hit a new 52-week high of $18.64 and is trading above its 50- and 200-day moving averages (~$15), with a market cap of about $572.4M and a beta of 2.03, suggesting recent bullish momentum but elevated volatility.
• Analysts are divided — four Buy, one Hold and two Sell — producing a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $20.60, though B. Riley recently initiated coverage with a Buy and $20 target.
• Insiders own 6.5% of the stock, but CFO Daryl Raiford sold 17,026 shares (reducing his position by 24.4%), while institutional investors hold 68.53% and several hedge funds increased their stakes in the fourth quarter.

Bandwidth Inc. (NASDAQ:BAND - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $18.64 and last traded at $18.3560, with a volume of 22867 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $18.05.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on BAND shares. B. Riley Financial started coverage on shares of Bandwidth in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $20.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded Bandwidth from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Bandwidth in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Bandwidth currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $20.60.

Bandwidth Trading Up 1.0%

The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $15.03 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $572.37 million, a P/E ratio of -42.42 and a beta of 2.03.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Bandwidth news, CFO Daryl E. Raiford sold 17,026 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $15.47, for a total value of $263,392.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 52,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $815,965.15. This represents a 24.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 6.50% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Bandwidth

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BAND. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Bandwidth by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 61,239 shares of the company's stock worth $950,000 after purchasing an additional 4,686 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in Bandwidth by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 66,988 shares of the company's stock worth $1,035,000 after purchasing an additional 4,223 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in Bandwidth by 90.1% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 102,040 shares of the company's stock worth $1,577,000 after purchasing an additional 48,359 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in Bandwidth by 44.5% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 140,471 shares of the company's stock worth $2,170,000 after purchasing an additional 43,246 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Bandwidth by 46.4% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 215,471 shares of the company's stock worth $3,329,000 after purchasing an additional 68,246 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.53% of the company's stock.

Bandwidth Company Profile

Bandwidth Inc operates a cloud-based communications platform that provides voice, messaging and emergency services APIs for enterprises and developers. Through its proprietary network and software-as-a-service model, the company enables customers to integrate programmable voice calls, text messaging and 9-1-1 routing into their applications. Bandwidth's solutions aim to reduce complexity and improve reliability in mission-critical communications, serving industries such as healthcare, financial services, on-demand mobility and customer engagement.

Founded in 1999 in Raleigh, North Carolina by co-founders David Morken and Henry Kaestner, Bandwidth initially focused on voice-over-IP infrastructure before evolving into a full communications API provider.

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