Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Shares Up 6.4% - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• Cogent Communications shares rose 6.4% to about $9.91, though trading volume was 71% below the average session level.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautious: the consensus rating is “Hold”, with 11 analysts covering the stock and several recently cutting price targets; the consensus target is $19.55.
• The company exceeded quarterly EPS expectations but reported a 4.4% year-over-year revenue decline. It also pays a $0.02 quarterly dividend, yielding approximately 0.8%, while institutional investors own 92.45% of outstanding shares.

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 6.4% during trading on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $9.88 and last traded at $9.9050. 411,632 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average session volume of 1,432,826 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.31.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $18.00 to $14.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on shares of Cogent Communications from $18.00 to $12.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Monday, August 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an "underweight" rating and set a $9.00 price objective (down from $22.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Cogent Communications from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $19.55.

Cogent Communications Trading Up 7.4%

The stock has a market cap of $512.25 million, a P/E ratio of -10.43 and a beta of 0.81. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $9.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $14.53.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.00) by $2.38. The business had revenue of $235.56 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.55 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($1.21) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st were given a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 21st. Cogent Communications's dividend payout ratio is -8.33%.

Insider Transactions at Cogent Communications

In other news, CFO Thaddeus Weed sold 4,850 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.37, for a total value of $45,444.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 193,050 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,808,878.50. This represents a 2.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 4.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cogent Communications

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Harspring Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Cogent Communications by 60.3% during the fourth quarter. Harspring Capital Management LLC now owns 1,402,500 shares of the technology company's stock worth $30,238,000 after buying an additional 527,500 shares during the last quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 7.7% in the 1st quarter. Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,348,897 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $81,933,000 after acquiring an additional 312,050 shares during the period. FourWorld Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $5,002,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Cogent Communications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,685,000. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its holdings in Cogent Communications by 341.1% during the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 226,035 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $3,137,000 after purchasing an additional 174,787 shares during the period. 92.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Cogent Communications

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc provides high-speed Internet connectivity and data communications services to businesses, carriers, Internet service providers and other organizations. Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Cogent Communications, the company operates an Internet Protocol (IP) network designed to support the transmission of data across metropolitan, national and international routes.

The company's service offerings include dedicated Internet access, IP transit, Ethernet transport, virtual private network services and colocation.

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