Optical Cable (NASDAQ:OCC) Upgraded to “Hold” at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Optical Cable (NASDAQ:OCC) to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on OCC. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Optical Cable in a report on Friday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Optical Cable from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce”.

Optical Cable Stock Up 5.4%

Shares of NASDAQ OCC opened at $13.84 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 2.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17. The company has a market cap of $122.21 million, a P/E ratio of 115.34 and a beta of 0.55. Optical Cable has a 52 week low of $4.02 and a 52 week high of $27.98. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $12.55.

Optical Cable (NASDAQ:OCC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, June 8th. The communications equipment provider reported $0.12 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $22.21 million during the quarter. Optical Cable had a net margin of 1.29% and a return on equity of 5.92%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($0.09) earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Optical Cable will post 0.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Optical Cable

In other news, CFO Tracy G. Smith sold 16,453 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.23, for a total value of $283,485.19. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 329,826 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,682,901.98. This represents a 4.75% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 22.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Optical Cable by 8.3% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 124,769 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock valued at $348,000 after acquiring an additional 9,535 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Optical Cable by 162.0% during the third quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 33,013 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $268,000 after purchasing an additional 20,413 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP bought a new stake in Optical Cable during the third quarter worth about $487,000. Citadel Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Optical Cable in the 3rd quarter worth about $102,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Optical Cable by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 268,932 shares of the communications equipment provider’s stock worth $1,197,000 after purchasing an additional 4,497 shares in the last quarter. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Optical Cable Company Profile

Optical Cable Corporation (NASDAQ: OCC) is a publicly traded designer and manufacturer of optical fiber and copper communications cable solutions. Headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, the company develops a broad range of standard and custom cable assemblies, connectors, hardware and accessories. Its product portfolio addresses data transmission requirements in demanding environments, including long-haul telecommunications, industrial automation, defense systems and submersible applications.

The company’s offerings are organized across multiple product lines, encompassing outside-plant fiber optic cable for aerial and underground installations, indoor/outdoor copper connectivity and specialty engineered cable assemblies.