Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) Shares Gap Down Following Insider Selling

Optimum Communications, Inc. (NYSE:OPTU)’s stock price gapped down prior to trading on Wednesday following insider selling activity. The stock had previously closed at $1.50, but opened at $1.42. Optimum Communications shares last traded at $1.51, with a volume of 590,844 shares traded.

Specifically, General Counsel Michael Olsen sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.40, for a total transaction of $28,000.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 1,239,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,735,693.40. The trade was a 1.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

OPTU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Optimum Communications in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised shares of Optimum Communications from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Evercore set a $2.00 target price on shares of Optimum Communications in a report on Friday, February 13th. Benchmark lowered shares of Optimum Communications from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Optimum Communications from $3.00 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $2.19.

Optimum Communications Stock Up 1.3%

The company’s 50-day moving average is $1.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $2.00. The company has a market cap of $715.10 million, a P/E ratio of -0.38 and a beta of 1.51.

Optimum Communications (NYSE:OPTU) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported ($0.15) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.15 billion. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.12) earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Optimum Communications, Inc. will post -0.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Optimum Communications

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in OPTU. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Optimum Communications in the third quarter worth about $26,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Optimum Communications in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Cibc World Markets Corp purchased a new position in Optimum Communications in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Voleon Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Optimum Communications during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Xponance LLC bought a new stake in Optimum Communications during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 54.85% of the company’s stock.

Optimum Communications Company Profile

Altice USA, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides broadband communications and video services in the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It offers broadband, video, telephony, and mobile services to approximately five million residential and business customers. The company’s video services include delivery of broadcast stations and cable networks; over the top services; video-on-demand, high-definition channels, digital video recorder, and pay-per-view services; and platforms for video programming through mobile applications.