Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) Stock Price Crosses Below Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Key Points

• Equinix shares fell below their 200-day moving average, trading as low as $988.07 versus the average of $1,012.18, and last traded at $997.35.
• Despite the technical decline, analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: the stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $1,234.13.
• Equinix reported quarterly EPS of $4.93, topping estimates of $4.11, while revenue rose 11% year over year to $2.57 billion. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $5.16 per share.

Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX - Get Free Report) shares passed below its 200-day moving average during trading on Thursday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $1,012.18 and traded as low as $988.07. Equinix shares last traded at $997.35, with a volume of 999,269 shares traded.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on EQIX shares. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $1,235.00 target price on shares of Equinix in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Equinix from $1,166.00 to $1,210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of Equinix from $1,210.00 to $1,240.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Equinix from $1,250.00 to $1,265.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Equinix from $1,300.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-six have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,234.13.

Equinix Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $98.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The company has a 50 day moving average of $1,017.99 and a 200 day moving average of $1,012.18.

Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The financial services provider reported $4.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.11 by $0.82. Equinix had a return on equity of 11.49% and a net margin of 16.38%. The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $9.83 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that Equinix, Inc. will post 39.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Equinix Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 16th. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $5.16 per share. This represents a $20.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, November 18th. Equinix's dividend payout ratio is presently 123.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Equinix news, Director Christopher Paisley sold 125 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,103.58, for a total transaction of $137,947.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,156,567.72. This trade represents a 0.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Michael Paladin sold 307 shares of Equinix stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,035.01, for a total transaction of $317,748.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,450 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,535,774.50. The trade was a 11.14% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 770 shares of company stock valued at $807,077. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equinix

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Equinix during the 2nd quarter worth $11,930,074,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Equinix by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,980,497 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,941,377,000 after acquiring an additional 27,643 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Equinix by 26,831.6% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,239,122 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,291,648,000 after acquiring an additional 1,234,521 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in shares of Equinix during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,181,260,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in shares of Equinix during the 2nd quarter worth $1,163,662,000. 94.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Equinix Company Profile

Equinix, Inc is a global digital infrastructure company that operates data centers where businesses, cloud providers, telecommunications carriers and other organizations can securely house and connect their information technology systems. Its International Business Exchange (IBX) data centers provide colocation services, allowing customers to place equipment in highly connected facilities without building and operating their own sites.

The company also provides interconnection and networking services, including Equinix Fabric, which enables customers to establish virtual connections among data centers, cloud platforms, networks and business partners.

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