Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Trading Up 6% – Here’s What Happened

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) was up 6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $12.26 and last traded at $12.3510. 100,841 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 1,236,232 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.65.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on CCOI. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cogent Communications from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, June 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $22.00 target price on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Cogent Communications from $22.00 to $18.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings cut Cogent Communications from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on Cogent Communications from $22.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 19th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $24.90.

Cogent Communications Trading Up 7.9%

The stock has a market capitalization of $629.26 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.53 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $16.58 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.12.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The technology company reported ($0.83) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.03) by $0.20. The firm had revenue of $239.19 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $241.31 million. Cogent Communications had a negative net margin of 17.53% and a negative return on equity of 842.48%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($1.09) EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -4.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were paid a $0.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Cogent Communications’s payout ratio is presently -2.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Cogent Communications

In other Cogent Communications news, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.79, for a total transaction of $81,431.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 197,900 shares in the company, valued at $3,322,741. This represents a 2.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.01, for a total transaction of $40,824.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 38,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $656,586. The trade was a 5.85% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 4.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cogent Communications

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its position in Cogent Communications by 208.6% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 968 shares during the period. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Cogent Communications by 313.9% in the fourth quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,486 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 1,127 shares during the period. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Cogent Communications in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. 92.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cogent Communications Company Profile

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) is a multinational Internet service provider specializing in high-speed Internet access and data transport services. The company operates one of the largest Tier 1 IP networks in the world, offering wholesale and enterprise customers reliable, low-latency connectivity. Cogent’s core services include dedicated Internet access, Ethernet transport, wavelength services, and MPLS-based IP Virtual Private Networks, all delivered over its privately owned, fiber-optic backbone.

In addition to network connectivity, Cogent provides data center colocation and managed services designed to support businesses with demanding bandwidth and redundancy requirements.