Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Price Target Lowered to $18.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Key Points

• Wells Fargo cut its price target to $18 (from $23) and kept an "equal weight" rating, part of a wave of analyst target reductions; the consensus on MarketBeat remains a "Hold" with an average target of $25.40.
• Shares traded around $16.63 midday—below most analyst targets—with a market cap of ~$832.6M, a 52‑week range of $14.82–$54.37, and recent quarterly results showing an EPS loss of $0.83 (beating estimates) and revenue down 3.2% year‑over‑year.
• Insiders have recently sold shares (including the CFO and a director); insiders own about 4.2% of the stock while institutional investors hold roughly 92.45%.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) had its price objective dropped by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $23.00 to $18.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "equal weight" rating on the technology company's stock. Wells Fargo & Company's price target points to a potential upside of 8.23% from the company's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Cogent Communications from $22.00 to $18.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Cogent Communications from $21.00 to $17.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $22.00 target price (down from $23.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $25.40.

Cogent Communications Stock Performance

Shares of Cogent Communications stock traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $16.63. 336,988 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,214,494. The company has a market cap of $832.58 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.71 and a beta of 0.85. Cogent Communications has a 52 week low of $14.82 and a 52 week high of $54.37. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $20.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.62.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 4th. The technology company reported ($0.83) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.20. Cogent Communications had a negative return on equity of 842.48% and a negative net margin of 17.53%.The business had revenue of $239.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $241.31 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($1.09) EPS. The firm's revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Cogent Communications will post -3.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Cogent Communications news, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.63, for a total value of $109,755.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 202,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,588,232.50. This represents a 2.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Lewis H. Ferguson sold 2,206 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.03, for a total value of $50,804.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,449 shares in the company, valued at approximately $470,940.47. This represents a 9.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,756 shares of company stock worth $292,467. 4.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cogent Communications

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CCOI. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in Cogent Communications by 3.6% in the third quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 7,534 shares of the technology company's stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its stake in Cogent Communications by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 6,835 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 370 shares in the last quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec lifted its stake in shares of Cogent Communications by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Federation des caisses Desjardins du Quebec now owns 2,850 shares of the technology company's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 10.3% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 5,466 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $335,000 after acquiring an additional 510 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in Cogent Communications by 80.5% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 596 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.45% of the company's stock.

About Cogent Communications

Cogent Communications NASDAQ: CCOI is a multinational Internet service provider specializing in high-speed Internet access and data transport services. The company operates one of the largest Tier 1 IP networks in the world, offering wholesale and enterprise customers reliable, low-latency connectivity. Cogent's core services include dedicated Internet access, Ethernet transport, wavelength services, and MPLS-based IP Virtual Private Networks, all delivered over its privately owned, fiber-optic backbone.

In addition to network connectivity, Cogent provides data center colocation and managed services designed to support businesses with demanding bandwidth and redundancy requirements.

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