Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Citigroup Analyst Says

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its price target on Uniti Group from $8.80 to $9.00 while keeping a "neutral" rating, implying about a 14.65% upside from the prior close.
• Uniti missed earnings, reporting ($1.19) EPS versus ($0.46) expected, even as revenue jumped 212.8% year-over-year; the stock traded around $7.85 with a market cap of roughly $1.16 billion.
• Analyst coverage is mixed—one Strong Buy, one Buy, four Hold and one Sell—resulting in an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $8.60.

Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by stock analysts at Citigroup from $8.80 to $9.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "neutral" rating on the real estate investment trust's stock. Citigroup's price target would suggest a potential upside of 14.65% from the company's previous close.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $11.00 price objective on shares of Uniti Group in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Zacks Research lowered shares of Uniti Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Uniti Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Uniti Group from $7.00 to $8.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Barclays set a $8.00 price target on shares of Uniti Group in a report on Thursday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $8.60.

Uniti Group Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ UNIT traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $7.85. 539,233 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,972,383. The company has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a PE ratio of 2.08 and a beta of 1.50. Uniti Group has a twelve month low of $5.30 and a twelve month high of $11.73. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $7.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $6.84.

Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, March 2nd. The real estate investment trust reported ($1.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.46) by ($0.73). The firm had revenue of $917.30 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $909.44 million. Uniti Group had a negative return on equity of 2.52% and a net margin of 55.60%.Uniti Group's revenue for the quarter was up 212.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Uniti Group will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Uniti Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in UNIT. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Uniti Group by 775.7% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 7,811 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 6,919 shares in the last quarter. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Uniti Group during the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Uniti Group by 20.6% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 10,511 shares of the real estate investment trust's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,795 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Uniti Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $72,000. Finally, FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Uniti Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $75,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.51% of the company's stock.

Uniti Group Company Profile

Uniti Group Inc is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and acquires communications infrastructure assets across the United States. Established in September 2015 through a spin-off from Windstream Holdings, Uniti Group focuses on leasing fiber, small cell networks, cell towers and related infrastructure to service providers, wireless carriers and other enterprises requiring high-capacity connectivity. The company's assets are designed to support the growing data demands of residential, business and governmental customers, with an emphasis on long-term contractual lease arrangements.

Uniti's portfolio encompasses an extensive fiber network that spans metropolitan and rural markets, as well as a portfolio of wireless towers and small cell nodes that facilitate mobile network densification and help carriers deploy 5G services.

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