Citigroup Lowers Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) Price Target to $1.50

Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) had its target price reduced by investment analysts at Citigroup from $1.90 to $1.50 in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price target suggests a potential upside of 14.07% from the stock’s previous close.

OPTU has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Optimum Communications in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research lowered Optimum Communications from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Evercore set a $2.00 price target on Optimum Communications in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Raymond James Financial lowered Optimum Communications from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Benchmark lowered Optimum Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus price target of $1.88.

Optimum Communications Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of Optimum Communications stock traded up $0.03 on Wednesday, hitting $1.32. The stock had a trading volume of 1,282,122 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,262,837. Optimum Communications has a 52-week low of $1.20 and a 52-week high of $2.98. The stock has a market cap of $618.65 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.33 and a beta of 1.51. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $1.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.82.

Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported ($0.15) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.14). The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.12) earnings per share. Analysts predict that Optimum Communications will post -0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Optimum Communications

In other news, General Counsel Michael Olsen sold 20,000 shares of Optimum Communications stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.29, for a total transaction of $25,800.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 1,219,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,573,517.49. The trade was a 1.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 290,000 shares of company stock worth $453,800 over the last quarter. Insiders own 44.60% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Optimum Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Optimize Financial Inc purchased a new position in shares of Optimum Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,595,000. 140 Summer Partners LP acquired a new position in Optimum Communications during the 3rd quarter worth $7,615,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in Optimum Communications by 11.1% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 8,803,557 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,217,000 after acquiring an additional 879,589 shares during the last quarter. Carronade Capital Management LP lifted its stake in shares of Optimum Communications by 42.3% in the third quarter. Carronade Capital Management LP now owns 5,768,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,903,000 after buying an additional 1,715,073 shares during the period. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP grew its position in Optimum Communications by 7.5% during the second quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 7,449,991 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,943,000 after buying an additional 521,287 shares in the last quarter. 54.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Optimum Communications Company Profile

Altice USA, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband communications and video services in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It offers broadband, video, telephony, and mobile services to approximately five million residential and business customers. The company’s video services include delivery of broadcast stations and cable networks; over the top services; video-on-demand, high-definition channels, digital video recorder, and pay-per-view services; and platforms for video programming through mobile applications.