Shenandoah Telecommunications (NASDAQ:SHEN) Stock Price Down 7.1% – What’s Next?

Shenandoah Telecommunications Co (NASDAQ:SHEN)’s share price dropped 7.1% on Wednesday. The company traded as low as $9.62 and last traded at $9.3140. 136,088 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 471,664 shares. The stock had previously closed at $10.03.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SHEN. BWS Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $26.00 target price on shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in a research note on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Shenandoah Telecommunications has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $27.50.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Stock Up 3.4%

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $11.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.88.

Shenandoah Telecommunications (NASDAQ:SHEN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The utilities provider reported ($0.19) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.23) by $0.04. The company had revenue of $93.93 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $94.10 million. Shenandoah Telecommunications had a negative return on equity of 4.58% and a negative net margin of 10.68%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Shenandoah Telecommunications Co will post -0.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Shenandoah Telecommunications Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared an annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.12 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 2nd. This represents a dividend yield of 123.0%. This is an increase from Shenandoah Telecommunications’s previous annual dividend of $0.11. Shenandoah Telecommunications’s payout ratio is -14.10%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Shenandoah Telecommunications

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Shenandoah Telecommunications during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $106,907,000. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL lifted its holdings in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications by 2.6% in the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 270,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,163,000 after purchasing an additional 6,874 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications in the second quarter valued at approximately $4,041,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in Shenandoah Telecommunications during the second quarter worth $3,974,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Shenandoah Telecommunications by 2.0% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 221,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,419,000 after acquiring an additional 4,340 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 61.96% of the company’s stock.

About Shenandoah Telecommunications

Shenandoah Telecommunications Company, also known as Shentel, is a telecommunications provider headquartered in Edinburg, Virginia. The company delivers broadband communications services to residential and commercial customers, with a focus on high-speed internet, fiber-optic connectivity, video and voice services.

Shentel operates its Glo Fiber network in selected communities and provides broadband services through its legacy cable and fiber networks. Its service territory primarily includes markets in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.