Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) Stock Price Down 5.7% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Shares fell 5.7% on Friday to about $1.575 (intraday low $1.55) on volume of 187,627 shares, roughly 92% below the average session volume of 2.27 million.
• Analyst sentiment is weak: the consensus rating is Reduce with a $1.88 target after several downgrades and target cuts (Citigroup cut its target to $1.50); five analysts rate Hold and two rate Sell.
• Fundamentals and insider activity point to pressure—Optimum missed EPS estimates (reported ($0.15) vs. ($0.01) expected), revenue fell 2.3% year-over-year, insiders sold about 290,000 shares recently (including 250,000 by the general counsel), and institutions hold roughly 55% of the stock.

Shares of Optimum Communications, Inc. (NYSE:OPTU - Get Free Report) fell 5.7% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $1.55 and last traded at $1.5750. 187,627 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 2,266,988 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.67.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on OPTU. Citigroup dropped their target price on Optimum Communications from $1.90 to $1.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Optimum Communications in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Evercore set a $2.00 target price on Optimum Communications in a report on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research upgraded Optimum Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut Optimum Communications from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus target price of $1.88.

Optimum Communications Stock Performance

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1.75. The firm has a market cap of $731.57 million, a P/E ratio of -0.39 and a beta of 1.51.

Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.14). The business's revenue was down 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned ($0.12) earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Optimum Communications, Inc. will post -0.4 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Optimum Communications news, General Counsel Michael Olsen sold 250,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.60, for a total transaction of $400,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 1,496,277 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,394,043.20. This represents a 14.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders sold 290,000 shares of company stock worth $453,800. Corporate insiders own 44.60% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new position in Optimum Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Optimum Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in shares of Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Voleon Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Optimum Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Cidel Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Optimum Communications in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 54.85% of the company's stock.

Optimum Communications Company Profile

Altice USA, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband communications and video services in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It offers broadband, video, telephony, and mobile services to approximately five million residential and business customers. The company's video services include delivery of broadcast stations and cable networks; over the top services; video-on-demand, high-definition channels, digital video recorder, and pay-per-view services; and platforms for video programming through mobile applications.

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