Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) Shares Down 8.3% - Here's What Happened

Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report)'s stock price dropped 8.3% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $72.98 and last traded at $73.47. Approximately 118,220 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 317,404 shares. The stock had previously closed at $80.11.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CCOI has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised Cogent Communications to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday. UBS Group started coverage on Cogent Communications in a report on Thursday, November 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $102.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $80.25.

Cogent Communications Stock Down 2.4 %

The company has a market capitalization of $3.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.44 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 2.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.87. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $76.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $77.10.

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Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 27th. The technology company reported ($0.91) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($1.22) by $0.31. Cogent Communications had a negative return on equity of 36.31% and a net margin of 3.73%. The firm had revenue of $252.29 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $258.49 million. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -4.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Cogent Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a $1.005 dividend. This represents a $4.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This is an increase from Cogent Communications's previous quarterly dividend of $1.00. Cogent Communications's dividend payout ratio is -93.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Henry W. Kilmer sold 4,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.61, for a total value of $362,928.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 33,800 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,555,618. This trade represents a 12.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CRO James Bubeck sold 1,920 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.60, for a total value of $147,072.00. Following the transaction, the executive now directly owns 49,542 shares in the company, valued at $3,794,917.20. The trade was a 3.73 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 8,145 shares of company stock worth $613,968. Corporate insiders own 11.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Cogent Communications

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in Cogent Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Cogent Communications by 204.5% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 405 shares of the technology company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 272 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications during the third quarter worth $46,000. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department acquired a new stake in Cogent Communications during the fourth quarter valued at $63,000. 92.45% of the stock is currently 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.