Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Shares Down 4.3% After Insider Selling

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) dropped 4.3% on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The company traded as low as $15.67 and last traded at $15.3650. Approximately 55,249 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 95% from the average daily volume of 1,179,724 shares. The stock had previously closed at $16.05.

Specifically, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of Cogent Communications stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.79, for a total value of $81,431.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 197,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,322,741. The trade was a 2.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.01, for a total value of $40,824.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 38,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $656,586. The trade was a 5.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on CCOI. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $34.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Cogent Communications from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Oppenheimer cut their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $40.00 to $30.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Williams Trading set a $40.00 target price on shares of Cogent Communications in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Cogent Communications from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, April 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $24.90.

Cogent Communications Stock Down 3.0%

The company has a market cap of $779.90 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.33 and a beta of 0.77. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.93.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The technology company reported ($0.83) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.03) by $0.20. Cogent Communications had a negative net margin of 17.53% and a negative return on equity of 842.48%. The firm had revenue of $239.19 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $241.31 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($1.09) EPS. The company’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -4.25 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th were issued a $0.02 dividend. This represents a $0.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 18th. Cogent Communications’s payout ratio is presently -2.25%.

Institutional Trading of Cogent Communications

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Cogent Communications in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Cogent Communications during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 208.6% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,432 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 968 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 313.9% in the 4th quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,486 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,127 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new stake in Cogent Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $104,000. 92.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.