Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) Shares Bought by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:CCOI) by 16.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 738,664 shares of the technology company’s stock after acquiring an additional 105,164 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc.’s holdings in Cogent Communications were worth $48,257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Cogent Communications by 56.7% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 2,026 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $154,000 after purchasing an additional 733 shares in the last quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Cogent Communications by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Capital Insight Partners LLC now owns 58,211 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $4,428,000 after buying an additional 945 shares in the last quarter. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Cogent Communications in the fourth quarter worth approximately $10,424,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Cogent Communications by 102.2% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 5,764 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $438,000 after buying an additional 2,914 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System acquired a new stake in shares of Cogent Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $1,651,000. Institutional investors own 92.45% of the company’s stock.

Cogent Communications Stock Down 3.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ CCOI traded down $2.38 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $66.85. The company had a trading volume of 396,985 shares, compared to its average volume of 488,440. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $59.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.18. Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $50.80 and a 12-month high of $86.00.

Cogent Communications (NASDAQ:CCOI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The technology company reported ($1.29) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($1.10) by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $266.17 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $274.13 million. Cogent Communications had a net margin of 114.09% and a negative return on equity of 24.63%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Cogent Communications Holdings, Inc. will post -4.81 EPS for the current year.

Cogent Communications Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.975 per share. This represents a $3.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.83%. This is a positive change from Cogent Communications’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.97. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 22nd. Cogent Communications’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 15.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CCOI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Cogent Communications from $73.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 13th. KeyCorp cut their price objective on Cogent Communications from $88.00 to $80.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $74.00 target price on shares of Cogent Communications in a report on Monday, July 29th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Cogent Communications from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Cogent Communications in a research report on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $56.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.57.

Insider Activity at Cogent Communications

In related news, CEO Dave Schaeffer sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.60, for a total value of $3,276,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 4,493,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,319,874.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Cogent Communications news, Director Marc Montagner bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $52.61 per share, with a total value of $526,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 79,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,180,811.48. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Dave Schaeffer sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.60, for a total value of $3,276,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 4,493,038 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,319,874.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 178,440 shares of company stock valued at $9,828,016. Insiders own 11.40% of the company’s stock.

Cogent Communications Company Profile

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.