Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX) Shares Acquired by Reaves W H & Co. Inc.

Key Points

• Reaves W H & Co. Inc. increased its stake in Equinix, Inc. by 36.1%, holding approximately $128.54 million in shares as of the latest SEC filing.
• Equinix reported a strong earnings performance with earnings per share of $9.91, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of $3.49, while its revenue reached $2.26 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $4.69 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.4%, although its dividend payout ratio is currently quite high at 183.74%.

Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX - Free Report) by 36.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 157,654 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 41,797 shares during the quarter. Equinix accounts for about 3.3% of Reaves W H & Co. Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Equinix worth $128,543,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of EQIX. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Equinix by 7.7% during the first quarter. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 377 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $307,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. American Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Equinix by 1,641.1% in the 1st quarter. American Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 17,359 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $14,154,000 after purchasing an additional 16,362 shares in the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC raised its holdings in Equinix by 129.1% in the 1st quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 126 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $103,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP purchased a new stake in shares of Equinix in the 1st quarter worth about $6,202,000. Finally, IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Equinix by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. IQ EQ FUND MANAGEMENT IRELAND Ltd now owns 1,894 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,544,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. 94.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Adaire Fox-Martin sold 2,949 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $884.91, for a total value of $2,609,599.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 9,615 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,508,409.65. This represents a 23.47% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Christopher B. Paisley sold 100 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $869.41, for a total transaction of $86,941.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 17,569 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,274,664.29. This represents a 0.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Equinix Stock Performance

EQIX stock traded down $5.94 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $773.00. 316,302 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 571,950. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.54 and a quick ratio of 1.54. Equinix, Inc. has a 1 year low of $701.41 and a 1 year high of $994.03. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $827.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $851.47. The company has a market cap of $75.65 billion, a PE ratio of 75.71, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 0.90.

Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $9.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.49 by $6.42. Equinix had a net margin of 11.11% and a return on equity of 7.22%. The firm had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $9.22 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Equinix, Inc. will post 33.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Equinix Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 20th will be given a dividend of $4.69 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 20th. This represents a $18.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. Equinix's dividend payout ratio is currently 183.74%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on EQIX. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Equinix from $1,050.00 to $1,010.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on Equinix from $1,069.00 to $900.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Bank of America lowered their price objective on Equinix from $1,000.00 to $950.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Equinix from $1,035.00 to $950.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Equinix in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and five have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Equinix presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $957.27.

Equinix Profile

Equinix Nasdaq: EQIX is the world's digital infrastructure company . Digital leaders harness Equinix's trusted platform to bring together and interconnect foundational infrastructure at software speed. Equinix enables organizations to access all the right places, partners and possibilities to scale with agility, speed the launch of digital services, deliver world-class experiences and multiply their value, while supporting their sustainability goals.