Charles Meyers Sells 305 Shares of Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) Stock

Key Points

• Chairman Charles Meyers sold 305 shares of Equinix on March 12 at an average price of $961.19, trimming his stake by 2.36% to 12,594 shares valued at about $12.1 million, according to an SEC filing.
• Equinix increased its quarterly dividend to $5.16 (annualized $20.64) for a 2.1% yield, up from $4.69, but the dividend payout ratio is roughly 150%, indicating dividends currently exceed earnings.
• The company missed quarterly estimates with EPS of $8.91 vs. $9.07 expected and revenue of $2.42B vs. $2.46B expected; the stock trades near its 12‑month high and carries a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $1,006.91 target.

Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX - Get Free Report) Chairman Charles Meyers sold 305 shares of Equinix stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $961.19, for a total value of $293,162.95. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 12,594 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,105,226.86. This trade represents a 2.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Equinix Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of EQIX traded down $1.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $969.90. The company's stock had a trading volume of 494,928 shares, compared to its average volume of 655,121. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.32. Equinix, Inc. has a 12-month low of $701.41 and a 12-month high of $992.90. The stock has a market cap of $95.29 billion, a PE ratio of 70.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.04. The company's 50 day moving average is $867.66 and its 200 day moving average is $812.35.

Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $8.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $9.07 by ($0.16). Equinix had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 9.60%. The business had revenue of $2.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.46 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.92 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Equinix, Inc. will post 33.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equinix Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th will be paid a dividend of $5.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, February 25th. This represents a $20.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.1%. This is an increase from Equinix's previous quarterly dividend of $4.69. Equinix's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 150.11%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of EQIX. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equinix by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,398,906 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,265,706,000 after purchasing an additional 107,227 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Equinix by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,249,780 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $4,971,512,000 after buying an additional 220,981 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in Equinix by 25.8% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,875,355 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,252,094,000 after buying an additional 588,967 shares during the period. Cohen & Steers Inc. raised its position in Equinix by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 2,609,011 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,998,978,000 after buying an additional 493,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Equinix by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,567,830 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,959,731,000 after buying an additional 25,383 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.94% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Equinix in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Equinix in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $1,128.00 target price for the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $915.00 target price on Equinix in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,075.00 price target on Equinix in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Equinix from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, January 10th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equinix has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,006.91.

About Equinix

Equinix, Inc is a global provider of digital infrastructure and interconnection services, specializing in carrier-neutral data centers and colocation. The company operates a platform that enables enterprises, cloud and network service providers, and content companies to colocate IT infrastructure, interconnect directly with partners and providers, and access cloud on-ramps and network services in a secure, low-latency environment.

Equinix's offerings include traditional colocation space and power, cross-connects and meet-me rooms, and a suite of connectivity and on-demand services designed for hybrid multicloud architectures.

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