Royal Bank of Canada Lowers Stock Position in Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. $CCOI

Royal Bank of Canada cut its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) by 98.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,447 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 493,519 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in Cogent Communications were worth $103,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its stake in Cogent Communications by 77.9% in the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 108,875 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,051,000 after buying an additional 47,668 shares in the last quarter. FourWorld Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Cogent Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $5,002,000. Weiss Asset Management LP bought a new stake in Cogent Communications during the 1st quarter valued at $319,000. Granahan Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 46.3% in the 1st quarter. Granahan Investment Management LLC now owns 317,447 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $5,981,000 after acquiring an additional 100,422 shares during the period. Finally, Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new position in shares of Cogent Communications in the 1st quarter valued at $996,000. 92.45% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Cogent Communications Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of Cogent Communications stock opened at $9.54 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $11.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $488.64 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.94 and a beta of 0.80. Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $9.00 and a 12-month high of $45.69.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The technology company reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($1.00) by $2.38. Cogent Communications had a negative net margin of 4.73% and a negative return on equity of 842.48%. The firm had revenue of $235.56 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $239.55 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.21) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -3.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 21st will be given a dividend of $0.02 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 21st. This represents a $0.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Cogent Communications’s payout ratio is currently -8.33%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Thaddeus Gerard Weed sold 4,850 shares of Cogent Communications stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.79, for a total transaction of $81,431.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 197,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,322,741. The trade was a 2.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $17.01, for a total value of $40,824.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 38,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $656,586. This represents a 5.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 4.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Cogent Communications

Here are the key news stories impacting Cogent Communications this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks outlook provides a counterpoint: Zacks Research issued an optimistic outlook for Cogent’s earnings, potentially offering some support if the company can improve operating performance. Zacks Research Issues Optimistic Outlook for CCOI Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple firms repeat the same class-action deadline: Rosen, Kaplan Fox, Robbins Geller, Faruqi & Faruqi, Bragar Eagel & Squire and other firms are encouraging investors who purchased CCOI shares between February 29, 2024, and May 1, 2026, to contact counsel before the September 21 lead-plaintiff deadline. These notices primarily seek investor participation and do not represent a new operating update from Cogent. Rosen Cogent class-action deadline notice
• Negative Sentiment: Litigation risk is the main downside catalyst: The lawsuit and related announcements allege that Cogent failed to disclose demand and backlog issues, potentially overstated growth prospects, and maintained an unsustainable dividend policy. One law firm said the alleged disclosures preceded an approximately 29% share-price decline. The complaints also raise alleged insider-pledging and forced-sale risks. The allegations have not been proven, but continued legal claims could increase costs, reputational risk and uncertainty for shareholders. Hagens Berman Cogent securities fraud class-action notice

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on CCOI. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Cogent Communications from $25.00 to $15.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Cogent Communications from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $18.00 to $12.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “underweight” rating and set a $9.00 price target (down from $22.00) on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Cogent Communications from $20.00 to $11.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.55.

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.