The Goldman Sachs Group Reiterates “Sell” Rating for Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR)

Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR)‘s stock had its “sell” rating reiterated by equities researchers at The Goldman Sachs Group in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $223.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price objective suggests a potential downside of 16.03% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently commented on the company. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Charter Communications from $425.00 to $355.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Loop Capital upgraded Charter Communications from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $430.00 to $510.00 in a report on Monday, May 19th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Charter Communications in a report on Thursday, August 21st. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $300.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Charter Communications from $430.00 to $370.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Charter Communications from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $394.61.

Charter Communications Trading Up 0.7%

NASDAQ CHTR opened at $265.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $329.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $358.53. The company has a market capitalization of $36.28 billion, a PE ratio of 7.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.33, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.57. Charter Communications has a 12 month low of $254.67 and a 12 month high of $437.06.

Charter Communications (NASDAQ:CHTR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 25th. The company reported $9.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $10.06 by ($0.88). The company had revenue of $13.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.76 billion. Charter Communications had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 26.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $8.49 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Charter Communications will post 38.16 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Christopher L. Winfrey acquired 3,670 shares of Charter Communications stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The stock was bought at an average cost of $273.10 per share, with a total value of $1,002,277.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 70,243 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,183,363.30. This represents a 5.51% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Balan Nair acquired 360 shares of Charter Communications stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $274.21 per share, with a total value of $98,715.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,622 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,638,448.62. This trade represents a 3.89% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.83% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. SouthState Corp acquired a new position in Charter Communications during the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp acquired a new position in Charter Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its position in Charter Communications by 2,033.3% during the second quarter. Salem Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 64 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in Charter Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in Charter Communications during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. 81.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Charter Communications

Charter Communications, Inc operates as a broadband connectivity and cable operator company serving residential and commercial customers in the United States. The company offers subscription-based internet, video, and mobile and voice services; a suite of broadband connectivity services, including fixed internet, WiFi, and mobile; Advanced WiFi services; Spectrum Security Shield; in-home WiFi, which provides customers with high performance wireless routers and managed WiFi services to enhance their fixed wireless internet experience; out-of-home WiFi; and Spectrum WiFi services.