Wall Street Zen Upgrades Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) to Sell

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Optimum Communications from "strong sell" to "sell", indicating a slightly less bearish stance but still negative sentiment on the stock.
• Other analysts remain cautious: the stock now carries an average rating of "Reduce" with an average price target of $0.95, and several firms have recently cut targets or issued sell/hold ratings.
• Optimum Communications shares were down 2.6% to $0.87, trading below both its 50-day and 200-day moving averages, while insiders and institutions continue to hold significant stakes.

Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "strong sell" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

A number of other research analysts have also recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded Optimum Communications from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded Optimum Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. UBS Group reduced their price target on Optimum Communications from $2.00 to $1.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Citigroup lowered Optimum Communications from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $1.50 to $0.50 in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Evercore set a $1.25 price target on Optimum Communications in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Optimum Communications presently has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average price target of $0.95.

Optimum Communications Trading Down 2.6%

NYSE:OPTU opened at $0.87 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $412.19 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.09 and a beta of 1.15. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $1.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1.39. Optimum Communications has a twelve month low of $0.58 and a twelve month high of $2.98.

Insider Transactions at Optimum Communications

In other Optimum Communications news, General Counsel Michael Olsen sold 20,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.59, for a total value of $31,800.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 1,199,781 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,907,651.79. This represents a 1.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 60,000 shares of company stock worth $71,800. 43.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Optimum Communications

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in OPTU. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Optimum Communications by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,803,557 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,217,000 after acquiring an additional 879,589 shares during the last quarter. Cerberus Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in Optimum Communications during the 4th quarter worth $6,502,000. Vanguard Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $46,002,000. Mount Capital Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter worth about $6,418,000. Finally, Shenkman Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,444,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 54.85% of the company's stock.

Optimum Communications Company Profile

Altice USA, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband communications and video services in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It offers broadband, video, telephony, and mobile services to approximately five million residential and business customers. The company's video services include delivery of broadcast stations and cable networks; over the top services; video-on-demand, high-definition channels, digital video recorder, and pay-per-view services; and platforms for video programming through mobile applications.

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