Helios Towers (LON:HTWS) Trading 11.4% Higher – Still a Buy?

Shares of Helios Towers plc (LON:HTWS) shot up 11.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as GBX 183.44 and last traded at GBX 172.66. 200,675,641 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 5,081% from the average session volume of 3,873,655 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 155.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on HTWS. Berenberg Bank reiterated a “buy” rating and set a GBX 175 target price on shares of Helios Towers in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on Helios Towers from GBX 255 to GBX 245 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of GBX 210.

Helios Towers Trading Down 2.2%

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is GBX 143.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is GBX 127.32. The company has a market capitalization of £1.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.11 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of -2,151.68.

Helios Towers announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to buyback $0.00 in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy shares of its stock through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Helios Towers

Helios Towers is a leading independent telecommunications infrastructure company, having established one of the most extensive tower portfolios across Africa and the Middle East. It builds, owns and operates telecom passive infrastructure, providing services to mobile network operators.

Helios Towers owns and operates telecommunication tower sites in Tanzania, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana, South Africa, Senegal, Madagascar, Malawi and Oman.

Helios Towers pioneered the model in Africa of buying towers that were held by single operators and providing services utilising the tower infrastructure to the seller and other operators.