Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. $CCOI Holdings Lifted by Vanguard Group Inc.

Key Points

• Vanguard Group increased its stake in Cogent Communications by 4.1% in the fourth quarter, ending with 5.58 million shares worth about $120.3 million and representing roughly 11.36% ownership.
• Cogent reported a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss, posting EPS of ($0.83) versus the expected ($1.03), though revenue of $239.19 million still came in slightly below estimates and fell 3.2% year over year.
• The company’s stock was down 1.8% to $16.11, while analysts remain cautious overall with a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $25.40; Cogent also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Free Report) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,580,271 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 217,450 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 11.36% of Cogent Communications worth $120,311,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CCOI. Quarry LP bought a new position in Cogent Communications in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Cogent Communications by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,092 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 756 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Cogent Communications by 466.9% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,262 shares of the technology company's stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 1,863 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 333.7% during the third quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,557 shares of the technology company's stock worth $60,000 after buying an additional 1,198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cogent Communications during the third quarter worth approximately $79,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.45% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cogent Communications

In other Cogent Communications news, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of Cogent Communications stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 202,750 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,588,232.50. The trade was a 2.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Lewis H. Ferguson sold 2,206 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 20,449 shares in the company, valued at $470,940.47. This represents a 9.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 12,756 shares of company stock valued at $292,467 over the last quarter. Insiders own 4.20% of the company's stock.

Cogent Communications Stock Down 1.8%

CCOI stock opened at $16.11 on Wednesday. Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.82 and a twelve month high of $54.37. The company has a market cap of $806.76 million, a P/E ratio of -4.54 and a beta of 0.85. The business has a fifty day moving average of $20.53 and a 200-day moving average of $22.85.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $241.31 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned ($1.09) EPS. Cogent Communications's quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -3.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on CCOI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed 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, May 5th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on shares of Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $30.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cogent Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, April 26th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $30.00 to $25.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Three equities research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $25.40.

Cogent Communications 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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