Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Invests $412,000 in AudioCodes Ltd. $AUDC

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has acquired a new position in AudioCodes Ltd., purchasing 43,700 shares valued at approximately $412,000, representing about 0.15% of the company.
• The company recently declared a dividend of $0.20, yielding 350.0%, with a payout ratio of 88.89%.
• Analysts have downgraded AudioCodes from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating, with an average price target of $11.25.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AudioCodes Ltd. (NASDAQ:AUDC - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 43,700 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock, valued at approximately $412,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 0.15% of AudioCodes at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in AudioCodes in the 4th quarter worth approximately $406,000. Trexquant Investment LP grew its stake in AudioCodes by 24.5% in the 1st quarter. Trexquant Investment LP now owns 133,791 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $1,260,000 after acquiring an additional 26,316 shares during the period. Heartland Advisors Inc. grew its stake in AudioCodes by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Heartland Advisors Inc. now owns 880,250 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $8,292,000 after acquiring an additional 21,650 shares during the period. Walleye Capital LLC grew its stake in AudioCodes by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Walleye Capital LLC now owns 241,131 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $2,271,000 after acquiring an additional 11,324 shares during the period. Finally, Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in AudioCodes by 12.0% in the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 101,954 shares of the communications equipment provider's stock worth $947,000 after acquiring an additional 10,936 shares during the period. 68.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut shares of AudioCodes from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $11.25.

AudioCodes Stock Up 1.0%

AUDC opened at $9.66 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $277.02 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.47 and a beta of 0.93. AudioCodes Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $7.70 and a fifty-two week high of $12.72. The company's 50-day moving average price is $9.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $9.52.

AudioCodes Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a half year 25 dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were paid a $0.20 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 14th. This represents a dividend yield of 350.0%. AudioCodes's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 88.89%.

About AudioCodes

AudioCodes Ltd. provides advanced communications software, products, and productivity solutions for the digital workplace worldwide. The company offers solutions, products, and services for unified communications, contact centers, hosted business services, Voice.AI, and service provider businesses. Its products include session border controllers, life cycle management solutions, VoIP network routing solutions, media gateways and servers, multi-service business routers, IP phones solutions, and value-added applications, as well as professional services.

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