Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Trading Down 5.4% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Cogent Communications shares fell 5.4% on Tuesday, trading as low as $12.34 and closing well below the prior day’s level amid lighter-than-usual volume.
• Recent analyst activity has been mixed, but the overall view remains cautious: the stock carries a consensus Hold rating with an average price target of $24.90, though some firms recently cut ratings or targets.
• The company beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, but results were still weak overall, with revenue down 3.2% year over year and analysts projecting a full-year loss of $4.25 per share.

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 5.4% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $12.34 and last traded at $12.2350. 353,236 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 1,232,469 shares. The stock had previously closed at $12.93.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on CCOI. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Cogent Communications from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Cogent Communications in a research note on Monday, June 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cogent Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Cogent Communications in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Cogent Communications from $22.00 to $18.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $24.90.

Cogent Communications Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $601.51 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.38 and a beta of 0.80. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $15.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $19.85.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The technology company reported ($0.83) earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $239.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $241.31 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted ($1.09) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -4.25 EPS for the current year.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 18th were given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 18th. Cogent Communications's dividend payout ratio is -2.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of Cogent Communications stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.01, for a total transaction of $40,824.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 38,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $656,586. This trade represents a 5.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.79, for a total value of $81,431.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 197,900 shares in the company, valued at $3,322,741. This represents a 2.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 4.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cogent Communications

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Shrier Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 33.1% during the 2nd quarter. Shrier Wealth Management LLC now owns 23,453 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 5,835 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 208.6% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the technology company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 968 shares in the last quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,348,897 shares of the technology company's stock worth $81,933,000 after purchasing an additional 312,050 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its stake in Cogent Communications by 77.9% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 108,875 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,051,000 after purchasing an additional 47,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FourWorld Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $5,002,000. 92.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.