Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

Shares of Equinix, Inc. (NASDAQ:EQIX) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $1,095.81 and last traded at $1,094.3750, with a volume of 13723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,088.62.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on EQIX shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Equinix from $785.00 to $894.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Equinix from $925.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Equinix in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. HSBC set a $1,050.00 target price on shares of Equinix and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Equinix from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,046.57.

Equinix Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $972.62 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $852.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 1.32 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 79.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 1.01.

Equinix (NASDAQ:EQIX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The financial services provider reported $8.91 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $9.07 by ($0.16). The firm had revenue of $2.42 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. Equinix had a net margin of 14.65% and a return on equity of 9.60%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.92 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Equinix, Inc. will post 33.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Equinix Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 25th were issued a dividend of $5.16 per share. This represents a $20.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 25th. This is a positive change from Equinix’s previous quarterly dividend of $4.69. Equinix’s payout ratio is currently 150.11%.

Insider Activity at Equinix

In related news, EVP Raouf Abdel sold 584 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $965.69, for a total transaction of $563,962.96. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 7,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,501,479.92. This represents a 6.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Charles J. Meyers sold 2,716 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $965.15, for a total transaction of $2,621,347.40. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 12,594 shares in the company, valued at $12,155,099.10. The trade was a 17.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 6,380 shares of company stock worth $6,179,022 in the last three months. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Equinix

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. grew its holdings in Equinix by 433.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. now owns 32 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Abound Wealth Management grew its holdings in Equinix by 209.1% during the 3rd quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 34 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Equinix in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Equinix by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 42 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC boosted its position in Equinix by 51.7% in the 4th quarter. WPG Advisers LLC now owns 44 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. 94.94% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Equinix Company Profile

Equinix, Inc is a global provider of digital infrastructure and interconnection services, specializing in carrier-neutral data centers and colocation. The company operates a platform that enables enterprises, cloud and network service providers, and content companies to colocate IT infrastructure, interconnect directly with partners and providers, and access cloud on-ramps and network services in a secure, low-latency environment.

Equinix’s offerings include traditional colocation space and power, cross-connects and meet-me rooms, and a suite of connectivity and on-demand services designed for hybrid multicloud architectures.