Banyan Capital Management Inc. Trims Stock Position in Charter Communications, Inc. $CHTR

Key Points

• Banyan Capital trimmed its stake by 41.1% in Q4, selling 15,913 shares and leaving 22,772 shares of Charter worth about $4.75M, representing 2.1% of the fund and its 17th-largest holding.
• Insiders increased exposure: CEO Christopher Winfrey bought 3,468 shares at $172.23 (raising his stake to 74,409 shares) and director Balan Nair bought 1,000 shares at $175.46, with insiders owning 1.10% of the company.
• Charter missed quarterly EPS expectations ($9.17 vs. $10.01 consensus) on $13.6B revenue; the stock trades near $165 with a ~$20.3B market cap and carries an average analyst rating of "Hold" and a $315.67 price target.

Banyan Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR - Free Report) by 41.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,772 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,913 shares during the period. Charter Communications makes up 2.1% of Banyan Capital Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Banyan Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Charter Communications were worth $4,754,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in CHTR. Dodge & Cox grew its position in Charter Communications by 6.1% during the third quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 11,807,549 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,248,316,000 after buying an additional 681,063 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Charter Communications by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,248,287 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,139,330,000 after buying an additional 885,935 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Charter Communications by 22.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,961,695 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,190,302,000 after buying an additional 1,475,383 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Charter Communications by 30.3% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,407,731 shares of the company's stock valued at $662,379,000 after buying an additional 559,361 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Charter Communications by 1.9% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,288,208 shares of the company's stock valued at $629,498,000 after buying an additional 42,499 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 81.76% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Christopher L. Winfrey acquired 3,468 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $172.23 per share, for a total transaction of $597,293.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 74,409 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,815,462.07. This trade represents a 4.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Balan Nair purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $175.46 per share, with a total value of $175,460.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 12,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,110,608.34. This trade represents a 9.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 10,196 shares of company stock valued at $1,767,822. Insiders own 1.10% of the company's stock.

Charter Communications Stock Down 3.7%

Shares of NASDAQ CHTR opened at $165.34 on Tuesday. Charter Communications, Inc. has a 12-month low of $158.00 and a 12-month high of $437.06. The stock has a market cap of $20.34 billion, a PE ratio of 4.47, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.56. The company has a 50-day moving average of $219.14 and a 200 day moving average of $215.98.

Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $9.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $10.01 by ($0.84). The business had revenue of $13.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $13.56 billion. Charter Communications had a net margin of 9.03% and a return on equity of 24.20%. The firm's revenue was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $8.42 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Charter Communications, Inc. will post 43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price target on shares of Charter Communications from $220.00 to $210.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 27th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Charter Communications from $428.00 to $437.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Williams Trading set a $437.00 price target on shares of Charter Communications in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Charter Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, February 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on shares of Charter Communications in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $215.00 price target for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $315.67.

About Charter Communications

Charter Communications, Inc is a U.S.-based telecommunications and mass media company that provides broadband communications and video services to residential and business customers. Operating primarily under the Spectrum brand, the company offers high-speed internet, cable television, digital voice (phone) and wireless services, as well as managed and enterprise networking solutions for commercial customers. Charter's service portfolio targets both consumer and business markets with bundled and standalone offerings designed to meet streaming, connectivity and communications needs.

The company's consumer-facing products include Spectrum Internet, Spectrum TV and Spectrum Voice, while Spectrum Mobile provides wireless service through arrangements with national wireless carriers.

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