Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) Shares Down 5.8% – Here’s Why

Optimum Communications, Inc. (NYSE:OPTU) fell 5.8% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $1.20 and last traded at $1.2150. 561,363 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 4,885,228 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.29.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on OPTU. Citigroup lowered shares of Optimum Communications from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $1.50 to $0.50 in a research note on Friday, May 15th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Optimum Communications from $2.00 to $1.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Optimum Communications from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Evercore set a $1.25 price objective on shares of Optimum Communications in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Optimum Communications from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Optimum Communications currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $0.95.

Optimum Communications Trading Down 5.4%

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $1.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $1.47. The company has a market capitalization of $581.29 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -0.12 and a beta of 1.36.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Michael Olsen sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.59, for a total value of $31,800.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 1,199,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,907,651.79. This represents a 1.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 60,000 shares of company stock valued at $80,000. 43.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Optimum Communications

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Voleon Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Cidel Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Xponance LLC bought a new stake in shares of Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 54.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Optimum Communications

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.