Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) Shares Gap Up – Still a Buy?

Charter Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:CHTR) shares gapped up prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $133.64, but opened at $168.11. Charter Communications shares last traded at $153.1730, with a volume of 4,581,809 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on CHTR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Charter Communications in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Charter Communications in a research report on Wednesday. New Street Research cut their target price on shares of Charter Communications from $328.00 to $302.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Charter Communications from $250.00 to $220.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $210.00 price target on shares of Charter Communications in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and six have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Charter Communications currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $276.00.

Charter Communications Trading Up 11.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.56, a current ratio of 0.40 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The business’s 50-day moving average is $155.75 and its 200 day moving average is $194.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 4.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.23 and a beta of 0.72.

Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 24th. The company reported $9.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.01 by ($0.84). Charter Communications had a net margin of 9.03% and a return on equity of 24.20%. The business had revenue of $13.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $8.42 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Charter Communications, Inc. will post 43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mauricio Ramos acquired 9,929 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $140.93 per share, for a total transaction of $1,399,293.97. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 19,309 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,721,217.37. The trade was a 105.85% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Balan Nair acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $175.46 per share, with a total value of $175,460.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 12,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,110,608.34. This represents a 9.07% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders acquired 20,125 shares of company stock valued at $3,167,116 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.10% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Dodge & Cox raised its stake in Charter Communications by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 14,609,220 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,049,675,000 after purchasing an additional 2,801,671 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Charter Communications by 9.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,248,287 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,139,330,000 after buying an additional 885,935 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Charter Communications by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,961,695 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,190,302,000 after buying an additional 1,475,383 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of Charter Communications by 304.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,815,422 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,005,222,000 after buying an additional 3,626,135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Charter Communications by 119.6% during the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 2,969,507 shares of the company’s stock worth $619,885,000 after acquiring an additional 1,617,148 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 81.76% of the company’s stock.

About Charter Communications

Charter Communications, Inc is a U.S.-based telecommunications and mass media company that provides broadband communications and video services to residential and business customers. Operating primarily under the Spectrum brand, the company offers high-speed internet, cable television, digital voice (phone) and wireless services, as well as managed and enterprise networking solutions for commercial customers. Charter’s service portfolio targets both consumer and business markets with bundled and standalone offerings designed to meet streaming, connectivity and communications needs.

The company’s consumer-facing products include Spectrum Internet, Spectrum TV and Spectrum Voice, while Spectrum Mobile provides wireless service through arrangements with national wireless carriers.