Iridium Communications (IRDM) Competitors

Iridium Communications (NASDAQ:IRDM) and Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) are both mid-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, community ranking, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, valuation, institutional ownership and media sentiment.

Is IRDM or CCOI a better dividend stock?

Iridium Communications pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Cogent Communications pays an annual dividend of $4.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 8.8%. Iridium Communications pays out 52.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Cogent Communications pays out -100.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Iridium Communications has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years and Cogent Communications has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Cogent Communications is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media refer more to IRDM or CCOI?

In the previous week, Cogent Communications had 1 more articles in the media than Iridium Communications. MarketBeat recorded 13 mentions for Cogent Communications and 12 mentions for Iridium Communications. Cogent Communications' average media sentiment score of 1.36 beat Iridium Communications' score of 1.28 indicating that Cogent Communications is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Iridium Communications	9 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Cogent Communications	10 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has more volatility & risk, IRDM or CCOI?

Iridium Communications has a beta of 0.74, meaning that its stock price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cogent Communications has a beta of 0.76, meaning that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do insiders and institutionals believe in IRDM or CCOI?

84.4% of Iridium Communications shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.4% of Cogent Communications shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.4% of Iridium Communications shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 10.2% of Cogent Communications shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts recommend IRDM or CCOI?

Iridium Communications presently has a consensus target price of $34.25, suggesting a potential upside of 35.23%. Cogent Communications has a consensus target price of $75.75, suggesting a potential upside of 64.19%. Given Cogent Communications' higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Cogent Communications is more favorable than Iridium Communications.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Iridium Communications	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.80
Cogent Communications	1 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Which has better valuation and earnings, IRDM or CCOI?

Cogent Communications has higher revenue and earnings than Iridium Communications. Cogent Communications is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Iridium Communications, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Iridium Communications	$841.71M	3.25	$112.78M	$1.06	23.89
Cogent Communications	$1.02B	2.24	$1.27B	-$4.01	-11.51

Is IRDM or CCOI more profitable?

Iridium Communications has a net margin of 13.58% compared to Cogent Communications' net margin of 3.73%. Iridium Communications' return on equity of 15.66% beat Cogent Communications' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Iridium Communications	13.58%	15.66%	4.15%
Cogent Communications	3.73%	-36.31%	-5.20%

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer IRDM or CCOI?

Cogent Communications received 10 more outperform votes than Iridium Communications when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 61.40% of users gave Cogent Communications an outperform vote while only 58.66% of users gave Iridium Communications an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Iridium Communications	Outperform Votes 491 58.66%	Underperform Votes 346 41.34%
Cogent Communications	Outperform Votes 501 61.40%	Underperform Votes 315 38.60%

Summary

Cogent Communications beats Iridium Communications on 15 of the 21 factors compared between the two stocks.