Zacks Research Issues Optimistic Forecast for CCOI Earnings

Key Points

• Zacks Research raised its Q3 2026 EPS estimate for Cogent Communications to a loss of $0.93 per share from a prior loss estimate of $0.94; it forecasts a $3.32 per-share loss for full-year 2026.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious, with an overall “Hold” rating and a $19.55 consensus price target, while CCOI opened at $9.48 near its 52-week low of $9.00.
• Cogent reported better-than-expected quarterly EPS but missed revenue estimates, with revenue down 4.4% year over year; the company also faces securities litigation allegations related to demand and wavelength-backlog disclosures.

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research boosted their Q3 2026 EPS estimates for shares of Cogent Communications in a note issued to investors on Thursday, August 27th. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the technology company will earn ($0.93) per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of ($0.94). The consensus estimate for Cogent Communications' current full-year earnings is ($3.01) per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Cogent Communications' Q4 2026 earnings at ($0.76) EPS, FY2026 earnings at ($3.32) EPS, Q1 2027 earnings at ($0.81) EPS, Q2 2027 earnings at ($0.80) EPS, Q3 2027 earnings at ($0.66) EPS, Q4 2027 earnings at ($0.73) EPS, FY2027 earnings at ($3.00) EPS, Q1 2028 earnings at ($0.69) EPS, Q2 2028 earnings at ($0.49) EPS and FY2028 earnings at ($2.22) EPS.

CCOI has been the topic of a number of other research reports. UBS Group set a $9.00 price objective on Cogent Communications in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and set a $9.00 price target (down from $22.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cogent Communications from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Cogent Communications in a research note on Monday, August 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $18.00 to $14.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $19.55.

Cogent Communications Price Performance

CCOI stock opened at $9.48 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $11.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $17.06. The company has a market cap of $485.53 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.88 and a beta of 0.80. Cogent Communications has a twelve month low of $9.00 and a twelve month high of $45.69.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.00) by $2.38. Cogent Communications had a negative return on equity of 842.48% and a negative net margin of 4.73%.The business had revenue of $235.56 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $239.55 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($1.21) earnings per share. Cogent Communications's quarterly revenue was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Cogent Communications's dividend payout ratio is presently -8.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.01, for a total value of $40,824.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 38,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $656,586. This represents a 5.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.79, for a total transaction of $81,431.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 197,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,322,741. This represents a 2.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 4.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cogent Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FourWorld Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications in the first quarter valued at about $5,002,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC increased its position in Cogent Communications by 46.3% during the first quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 317,447 shares of the technology company's stock worth $5,981,000 after acquiring an additional 100,422 shares during the period. Redmond Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Cogent Communications by 45.8% in the 4th quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC now owns 200,082 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,314,000 after purchasing an additional 62,828 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Cogent Communications by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,580,271 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $120,311,000 after purchasing an additional 217,450 shares during the period. Finally, Walleye Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 145.4% during the 1st quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 239,557 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,513,000 after purchasing an additional 141,949 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.45% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Cogent Communications

Here are the key news stories impacting Cogent Communications this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: The lawsuit covers investors who purchased Cogent securities between February 29, 2024, and May 1, 2026. Investors seeking to serve as lead plaintiff must apply by September 21, 2026. The announcements are largely procedural and promotional notices from plaintiffs’ law firms, and do not represent a court finding that Cogent committed wrongdoing. Kaplan Fox class-action deadline notice
• Negative Sentiment: The complaints allege that Cogent failed to disclose problems involving demand and its wavelength backlog, potentially misleading investors about growth prospects. Several notices reference an approximately 29% stock decline following the alleged disclosures, while one describes investor losses of roughly $69 per share. These are allegations contained in the litigation, not independently established facts. Cogent securities fraud class-action allegations
• Negative Sentiment: The litigation adds legal, reputational and potential financial risks for Cogent. The stock has already declined substantially and is trading near its 52-week low, while recent quarterly revenue fell year over year and the company remains unprofitable, increasing investor sensitivity to the allegations.

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.

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.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source