Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Shares Up 7.3% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Cogent Communications shares rose 7.3% on Monday, trading as high as $17.90 after closing at $16.48 the prior day. Trading volume was well below average.
• Wall Street sentiment remains cautious: analysts have a Hold consensus rating with an average price target of $25.40, even as several firms recently cut their targets. TD Cowen still rates the stock a Buy, but lowered its target to $34.
• The company recently beat earnings estimates for the latest quarter, reporting a smaller-than-expected loss of $0.83 per share, though revenue slipped 3.2% year over year to $239.19 million. Cogent also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share, yielding about 0.5% annually.

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 7.3% on Monday . The company traded as high as $17.90 and last traded at $17.6870. Approximately 141,446 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 1,198,404 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.48.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CCOI. TD Cowen lowered their price objective on shares of Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cogent Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 23rd. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Cogent Communications from $30.00 to $25.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Williams Trading set a $40.00 price objective on Cogent Communications in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $25.40.

Cogent Communications Trading Up 6.4%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $20.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.28. The firm has a market cap of $878.05 million, a P/E ratio of -4.94 and a beta of 0.85.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The technology company reported ($0.83) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.20. Cogent Communications had a negative net margin of 17.53% and a negative return on equity of 842.48%. The business had revenue of $239.19 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $241.31 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.09) EPS. Cogent Communications's quarterly revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -3.9 EPS for the current year.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 18th. Cogent Communications's payout ratio is presently -2.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cogent Communications

In related news, Director Sheryl Lynn Kennedy sold 3,300 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.99, for a total transaction of $75,867.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,100 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $232,199. This trade represents a 24.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Lewis H. Ferguson sold 2,206 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.03, for a total transaction of $50,804.18. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 20,449 shares of the company's stock, valued at $470,940.47. This represents a 9.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,756 shares of company stock valued at $292,467. 4.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cogent Communications

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in CCOI. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Cogent Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $202,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 26.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 476,513 shares of the technology company's stock worth $29,215,000 after buying an additional 100,969 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cogent Communications by 10.3% in the 1st 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 during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Cogent Communications by 23.4% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 161,791 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $9,919,000 after acquiring an additional 30,630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $104,000. 92.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cogent Communications Company Profile

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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