Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Reaches New 12-Month Low After Earnings Miss

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock traded as low as $45.00 and last traded at $47.13, with a volume of 461969 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $53.21.

The technology company reported ($1.09) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.05) by ($0.04). Cogent Communications had a net margin of 3.73% and a negative return on equity of 36.31%. The company had revenue of $247.05 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $250.81 million. During the same period last year, the company earned ($1.38) EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis.

Cogent Communications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 22nd will be issued a $1.01 dividend. This is a positive change from Cogent Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.01. This represents a $4.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 8.20%. Cogent Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -93.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Cogent Communications to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $80.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Cogent Communications news, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.57, for a total transaction of $174,168.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 41,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,975,370. This represents a 5.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Lewis H. Ferguson sold 956 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.36, for a total value of $66,308.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 18,652 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,293,702.72. This trade represents a 4.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,681 shares of company stock worth $840,878 in the last ninety days. 11.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CCOI. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications in the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 53.8% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 623 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. increased its holdings in Cogent Communications by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. now owns 618 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Cogent Communications by 35.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,047 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 274 shares during the period. 92.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Cogent Communications Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $59.54 and its 200 day simple moving average is $71.79. The company has a market capitalization of $2.43 billion, a PE ratio of 63.17 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87, a current ratio of 2.03 and a quick ratio of 2.03.

Cogent Communications Company Profile

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.