Shenandoah Telecommunications (NASDAQ:SHEN) Trading Up 9.7% Following Strong Earnings

Key Points

• Shenandoah Telecommunications shares jumped 9.7% after the company reported quarterly EPS of negative $0.17, beating estimates of negative $0.28, while revenue of $93.46 million also exceeded expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains mixed: two analysts rate the stock Buy and one rates it Sell, resulting in a consensus Hold rating and a $27.50 average price target.
• Institutional investors increased their holdings, and hedge funds and other institutions collectively own approximately 61.96% of the company’s stock.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Co (NASDAQ:SHEN - Get Free Report) traded up 9.7% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $13.00 and last traded at $12.9870. 387,329 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 14% from the average session volume of 339,989 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.84.

The utilities provider reported ($0.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.28) by $0.11. Shenandoah Telecommunications had a negative return on equity of 4.64% and a negative net margin of 11.35%.The company had revenue of $93.46 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $92.83 million.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on SHEN shares. BWS Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $29.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications from a "sell (d+)" rating to a "sell (d-)" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Shenandoah Telecommunications from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, May 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Shenandoah Telecommunications currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $27.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Shenandoah Telecommunications

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. ECP ControlCo LLC increased its position in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. ECP ControlCo LLC now owns 3,457,105 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,964,000 after purchasing an additional 79,872 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Shenandoah Telecommunications by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,639,113 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,416,000 after purchasing an additional 39,653 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Shenandoah Telecommunications by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,927,155 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $22,278,000 after purchasing an additional 31,375 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its position in Shenandoah Telecommunications by 1,116.6% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,087,246 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,569,000 after purchasing an additional 997,882 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Shenandoah Telecommunications by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 796,076 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,203,000 after purchasing an additional 59,443 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.96% of the company's stock.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Stock Up 10.4%

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $14.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $14.18. The company has a market capitalization of $723.11 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -16.34 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

About Shenandoah Telecommunications

Shenandoah Telecommunications Company operates as a diversified communications provider offering both wireless and wireline services across rural markets in the Mid-Atlantic region. Headquartered in Edinburg, Virginia, the company designs, builds and maintains network infrastructure to deliver mobile connectivity, high-speed broadband access and related telecommunications solutions to residential, business and wholesale customers.

In its wireless segment, the company owns and operates a portfolio of cellular towers and associated spectrum under a long-term partnership with a national carrier.

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