Insider Selling: Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) Director Sells 846 Shares of Stock

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) Director Lewis H. Ferguson sold 846 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.76, for a total transaction of $69,168.96. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,500,623.04. This trade represents a 4.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Cogent Communications Stock Performance

Cogent Communications stock traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $79.96. The stock had a trading volume of 260,777 shares, compared to its average volume of 438,980. The company has a 50-day moving average of $78.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $68.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $50.80 and a fifty-two week high of $86.76. The company has a market cap of $3.92 billion, a PE ratio of 102.51 and a beta of 0.40.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The technology company reported ($1.33) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.34) by $0.01. The company had revenue of $257.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $258.69 million. Cogent Communications had a net margin of 3.73% and a negative return on equity of 36.31%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($1.13) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -4.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.995 per share. This represents a $3.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.98%. This is an increase from Cogent Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $0.99. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 22nd. Cogent Communications's payout ratio is presently 505.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on CCOI shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Cogent Communications from $62.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $102.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $74.00 price objective on shares of Cogent Communications in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $78.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Cogent Communications from $70.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Cogent Communications currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $80.25.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cogent Communications

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in Cogent Communications in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 204.5% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 405 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Cogent Communications by 72.9% during the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 536 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in Cogent Communications by 127.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 787 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. 92.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cogent Communications

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.