Lumen Technologies (NYSE:LUMN) Stock Price Up 7.4% - What's Next?

Lumen Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:LUMN) saw its stock price increase by 7.4% during trading on Wednesday, reaching a high of $5.86 before closing slightly lower at $5.89. In total, 4,417,680 shares changed hands, which is a significant drop of 44% from the average trading volume of 7,885,958 shares. Just the previous day, the stock closed at $5.48.

Wall Street Analysts Provide Insights

Recently, Lumen Technologies has been a focal point for several analysts. TD Cowen adjusted their target price for Lumen from $7.00 to $6.00, maintaining a "hold" rating. Meanwhile, Citigroup raised its target from $6.50 to $8.00 and assigned a "neutral" rating on November 29th. Additionally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating, bumping their price target from $4.00 to $4.25 in a report on December 20th. Goldman Sachs also increased its price target from $4.50 to $5.00 while reaffirming a "neutral" rating. Currently, three analysts rate the stock as a sell, whereas six analysts recommend holding the stock, resulting in an overall average rating of "Hold" with a consensus price target of $4.66.

Market Performance and Ratios

Lumen Technologies currently has a market capitalization of $6.01 billion and is trading with a P/E ratio of -2.73. The company's beta stands at 1.28, indicating that its stock price is relatively volatile compared to the market. Its liquidity ratios show a current ratio of 1.20 and a quick ratio of 1.20. Moreover, the company's debt-to-equity ratio is high at 53.05, which could be a point of concern for investors. The stock's moving averages show a 50-day average of $6.30 and a 200-day average of $5.72.

Lumen Technologies released its quarterly earnings on November 5th. The results met with some disappointment as the company reported an earnings per share (EPS) of ($0.13), falling short of analysts' expectations of ($0.09) by $0.04. The company recorded a net margin of -16.06% and a return on equity of -49.74%. Revenue for the quarter was $3.22 billion, slightly above the consensus estimate of $3.21 billion, but this figure still represents an 11.5% decline from the previous year. Analysts predict that Lumen will report an EPS of -0.38 for the current fiscal year.

Changes in Institutional Ownership

Institutional investors have also been active with Lumen Technologies recently. Geode Capital Management increased its holdings by 1.7% in Q3, owning 23,344,313 shares valued at approximately $165.8 million after acquiring an additional 383,693 shares. Hennessy Advisors purchased a new stake in Lumen in Q4 worth $45.1 million. Meanwhile, Millennium Management raised its stake significantly by 129.8% in Q2 after acquiring an additional 4.4 million shares, bringing its total to 7,854,906 shares valued at about $8.6 million. AQR Capital Management also boosted its holdings by 52.5%, now owning 3,621,874 shares valued at $3.7 million. Overall, institutional investors control 66.19% of Lumen Technologies stock.

Understanding Lumen Technologies

Lumen Technologies operates as a facilities-based technology and communications firm. It provides a range of integrated products and services to both business and residential customers across the U.S. and internationally. The company functions in two key segments: Business and Mass Markets. Lumen offers services that include dark fiber, edge cloud services, internet protocol, managed security, and software-defined wide area networks, among others. It also provides legacy services such as time division multiplexing voice and private lines along with communication equipment and IT solutions.

Considering Investment in Lumen Technologies?

If you're contemplating investing in Lumen Technologies, it's worth noting that some analysts currently hold a "Reduce" rating on the stock. In fact, there are five other stocks that top analysts have identified as potentially better investment choices at this moment. Therefore, if you're looking for gaining insights into promising investment opportunities, it might be beneficial to explore these alternatives.

Lumen, Stock, Investment