Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT) Shares Gap Down - Here's Why

Key Points

• Uniti Group's stock price gapped down significantly from $9.82 to $7.57 before closing at $8.07, representing a 16.2% drop.
• Analyst ratings have varied, with Citigroup reaffirming a "neutral" rating at a $5.30 price target and Wells Fargo lowering their target from $5.00 to $4.50.
• The company's quarterly earnings matched estimates at $0.35 EPS but fell short on revenue, generating $293.91 million against expectations of $295.39 million.

Shares of Uniti Group Inc. (NASDAQ:UNIT - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $9.82, but opened at $7.57. Uniti Group shares last traded at $8.07, with a volume of 302,260 shares traded.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on UNIT shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Uniti Group from $4.50 to $7.50 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $5.30 price objective on shares of Uniti Group in a report on Friday, May 16th.

Uniti Group Trading Down 2.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 24.81 and a beta of 1.47. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $4.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $4.94.

Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The real estate investment trust reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.42 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $300.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $304.06 million. Uniti Group had a net margin of 2.96% and a negative return on equity of 1.43%. Uniti Group's revenue for the quarter was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.34 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Uniti Group Inc. will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Uniti Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. KBC Group NV purchased a new stake in Uniti Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Uniti Group by 775.7% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,811 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 6,919 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in Uniti Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $45,000. American Century Companies Inc. purchased a new stake in Uniti Group during the first quarter worth about $65,000. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Uniti Group during the first quarter worth about $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.51% of the company's stock.

Uniti Group Company Profile

Uniti Group, Inc is a real estate investment trust company, which engages in the acquisition, construction, and leasing of properties. It operates through the following business segments: Uniti Leasing, Uniti Fiber, and Corporate. The Uniti Leasing segment involves mission-critical communications assets on exclusive or shared-tenant basis, and dark fiber network.