Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Stock Price Up 7.3% – Here’s Why

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI)’s stock price was up 7.3% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $9.67 and last traded at $9.8360. Approximately 691,315 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the average daily volume of 1,295,714 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.17.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CCOI has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Cogent Communications in a report on Monday, August 17th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cogent Communications from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Cogent Communications from $20.00 to $11.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. UBS Group set a $9.00 price objective on Cogent Communications in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and issued a $9.00 price objective (down from $22.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cogent Communications presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $19.55.

Cogent Communications Trading Up 6.1%

The company has a market capitalization of $498.37 million, a P/E ratio of -10.12 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $12.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $17.56.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.00) by $2.38. Cogent Communications had a negative return on equity of 842.48% and a negative net margin of 4.73%.The business had revenue of $235.56 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $239.55 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.21) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -2.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be issued a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 21st. Cogent Communications’s payout ratio is currently -8.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of Cogent Communications stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president owned 38,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $656,586. The trade was a 5.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 197,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,322,741. This trade represents a 2.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 4.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Cogent Communications

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in CCOI. FourWorld Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications during the first quarter worth approximately $5,002,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 46.3% during the 1st quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 317,447 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $5,981,000 after purchasing an additional 100,422 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Cogent Communications by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,580,271 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $120,311,000 after buying an additional 217,450 shares during the period. Redmond Asset Management LLC increased its position in Cogent Communications by 45.8% in the 4th quarter. Redmond Asset Management LLC now owns 200,082 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $4,314,000 after buying an additional 62,828 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vest Financial LLC increased its position in Cogent Communications by 206.4% in the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 74,634 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,609,000 after buying an additional 50,276 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 92.45% of the company’s stock.

About Cogent Communications

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.