Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Brokerages

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) has received a consensus 'Hold' rating from nine analysts. The stock has varied price targets, with recent adjustments by UBS, Citigroup, KeyCorp, and Wells Fargo. The company reported a quarterly EPS of ($0.87), beating estimates, and announced a $100 million stock buyback plan. Recent insider transactions include sales by Directors Sheryl Lynn Kennedy and Lewis H. Ferguson. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.02 per share.

Shares of Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Hold" by the nine analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $25.7143.

Get Cogent Communications alerts:

Big Dippers: 3 Stocks Near 1-Year Lows That Could Surge in 2025

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Zacks Research raised shares of Cogent Communications from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $27.00 price objective (down from $50.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Cogent Communications from $33.00 to $25.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on Cogent Communications from $65.00 to $30.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and set a $27.00 price target (down from $45.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a report on Friday, November 7th.

Check Out Our Latest Analysis on Cogent Communications

Cogent Communications Price Performance

2 Mid-Cap Telecom Stocks Offering Superior Returns

CCOI stock opened at $19.99 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 2.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 49.06. The company has a market capitalization of $981.91 million, a P/E ratio of -4.90 and a beta of 0.83. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $33.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.19. Cogent Communications has a twelve month low of $15.96 and a twelve month high of $84.06.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The technology company reported ($0.87) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($1.15) by $0.28. The firm had revenue of $241.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $246.13 million. Cogent Communications had a negative net margin of 19.72% and a negative return on equity of 208.70%. Cogent Communications's revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.33) EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Cogent Communications will post -4.55 EPS for the current year.

Cogent Communications announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, August 7th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the technology company to buy up to 4.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Cogent Communications Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 21st will be paid a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 21st. Cogent Communications's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -1.96%.

Insider Transactions at Cogent Communications

In other Cogent Communications news, Director Sheryl Lynn Kennedy sold 2,400 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.34, for a total value of $51,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 10,012 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $213,656.08. This trade represents a 19.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Lewis H. Ferguson sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.34, for a total transaction of $81,360.00. Following the sale, the director owned 19,267 shares in the company, valued at $391,890.78. The trade was a 17.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 8,800 shares of company stock worth $221,352 over the last ninety days. 10.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Cogent Communications

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Cogent Communications during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in Cogent Communications by 297.8% during the 2nd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 740 shares of the technology company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 554 shares during the period. Resources Management Corp CT ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications during the first quarter worth about $48,000. Finally, Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in shares of Cogent Communications in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.45% of the company's stock.

Cogent Communications Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides high-speed Internet access, private network, and data center colocation space services in North America, Europe, Oceania, South America, and Africa. The company offers on-net Internet access and private network services to law firms, financial services firms, and advertising and marketing firms, as well as heath care providers, educational institutions and other professional services businesses, other Internet service providers, telephone companies, cable television companies, web hosting companies, media service providers, mobile phone operators, content delivery network companies, and commercial content and application service providers.

Should You Invest $1,000 in Cogent Communications Right Now?

Before you consider Cogent Communications, you'll want to hear this.

MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Cogent Communications wasn't on the list.

While Cogent Communications currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.

View The Five Stocks Here