VNET Group (NASDAQ:VNET) Trading 7.5% Higher - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• VNET Group shares rose 7.5% to approximately $6.55, although trading volume was 65% below the stock’s average daily level.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus, with an average price target of $16.90, substantially above the current share price.
• The company remains financially pressured: its latest quarterly loss exceeded expectations, while it reported negative margins, negative return on equity and a high debt-to-equity ratio of 4.35. Institutional investors own 72.83% of the stock.

VNET Group, Inc. - Unsponsored ADR (NASDAQ:VNET - Get Free Report) shares shot up 7.5% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $6.48 and last traded at $6.5450. 2,222,152 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 6,299,037 shares. The stock had previously closed at $6.09.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VNET. Zacks Research raised VNET Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 27th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $24.79 price target on shares of VNET Group in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. Bank of America set a $16.30 target price on shares of VNET Group and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $14.00 price target on shares of VNET Group in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on shares of VNET Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $12.50 price objective on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, VNET Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $16.90.

VNET Group Trading Up 7.5%

The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.35. The stock has a market cap of $1.77 billion, a PE ratio of -4.60 and a beta of 0.27. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $6.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $8.36.

VNET Group (NASDAQ:VNET - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 19th. The information technology services provider reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.04). VNET Group had a negative return on equity of 36.25% and a negative net margin of 22.29%.The firm had revenue of $409.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $401.77 million. As a group, equities analysts expect that VNET Group, Inc. - Unsponsored ADR will post -0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On VNET Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in VNET Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,650,000. Infini Capital Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of VNET Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,883,000. Carmignac Gestion lifted its holdings in VNET Group by 1,375.1% in the 2nd quarter. Carmignac Gestion now owns 4,760,599 shares of the information technology services provider's stock valued at $38,123,000 after purchasing an additional 4,437,879 shares in the last quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd boosted its stake in VNET Group by 988.7% during the 4th quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 3,253,150 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $27,522,000 after purchasing an additional 2,954,350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of VNET Group by 1,419.3% during the fourth quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,979,000 shares of the information technology services provider's stock worth $16,742,000 after buying an additional 2,129,000 shares in the last quarter. 72.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

VNET Group Company Profile

VNET Group, Inc NASDAQ: VNET, formerly known as 21Vianet Group, is a China-based provider of data center and information technology infrastructure services. The company operates carrier-neutral data centers that support enterprise customers, cloud service providers, internet companies, financial institutions and other organizations requiring secure, reliable computing and network capacity.

Its services include data center hosting and colocation, managed network services, cloud computing infrastructure, internet connectivity, content delivery and related information technology solutions.

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