Vanguard Group Inc. Cuts Stake in Shenandoah Telecommunications Co $SHEN

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. reduced its stake in Shenandoah Telecommunications by 18.4%, selling over 1 million shares and now holds approximately 8.23% of the company.
• The stock has received mixed recommendations from analysts, with a consensus rating of "Buy" but one firm recently downgraded it to a "strong sell" while maintaining a price target of $26.00.
• Insider transactions noted include significant purchases by major shareholders and the CEO, indicating a possible confidence in the company despite recent stock performance challenges.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications Co (NASDAQ:SHEN - Free Report) by 18.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,514,578 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 1,015,269 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 8.23% of Shenandoah Telecommunications worth $56,748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in the first quarter valued at $90,000. Two Sigma Investments LP purchased a new position in Shenandoah Telecommunications in the 4th quarter valued at about $126,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in Shenandoah Telecommunications by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 13,735 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $173,000 after acquiring an additional 1,380 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new position in Shenandoah Telecommunications during the 4th quarter worth approximately $175,000. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications by 44.7% during the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 14,622 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 4,517 shares during the last quarter. 61.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Ecp Fiber Holdings Gp, Llc bought 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 17th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $14.62 per share, for a total transaction of $438,600.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the insider owned 2,903,506 shares in the company, valued at approximately $42,449,257.72. This represents a 1.04% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Ecp Controlco, Llc acquired 36,238 shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications stock in a transaction on Monday, June 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $12.58 per share, with a total value of $455,874.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 2,599,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $32,698,866.92. This trade represents a 1.41% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought 725,044 shares of company stock valued at $10,018,622 over the last ninety days. 4.51% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ SHEN remained flat at $13.25 during mid-day trading on Friday. 397,965 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 344,872. Shenandoah Telecommunications Co has a twelve month low of $9.77 and a twelve month high of $16.89. The company has a market cap of $726.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.66 and a beta of 0.90. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $13.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $12.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.73.

Shenandoah Telecommunications (NASDAQ:SHEN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported ($0.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.20) by $0.01. Shenandoah Telecommunications had a negative net margin of 8.90% and a negative return on equity of 3.78%. The company had revenue of $88.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $89.94 million. Shenandoah Telecommunications has set its FY 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Shenandoah Telecommunications Co will post -0.49 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. BWS Financial reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $26.00 price objective on shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen cut Shenandoah Telecommunications from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Shenandoah Telecommunications currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $26.00.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Company Profile

Shenandoah Telecommunications Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of broadband communication services and cell tower colocation space in the Mid-Atlantic portion of the United States. It operates in two segments, Broadband and Tower. The company Broadband segment offers broadband, video, and voice services to residential and commercial customers in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky through hybrid fiber coaxial cable under the Shentel brand; and fiber optic services under the Glo Fiber brand name.