What happened
Giant publicly traded companies can often withstand negative takes from analysts, but that isn't always the case with relatively smaller players.
That's what happened this week with the relatively under-the-radar CommScope Holding (COMM 2.50%). On the back of two prognosticator price cuts plus one downgrade, the telecom equiment maker's stock slid by 15% in price, according to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
So what
Of the pair of adjustments, one was quite drastic and the other relatively modest.
The drastic one came from Jefferies' George Notter, who downgraded his recommendation on CommScope stock one peg, to hold from his previous buy. Notter now feels that CommScope stock is worth only $5.50 per share; previously, he had placed its value at $15.
Northland Capital Markets' Tim Savageaux wasn't as severe, reducing his price target to $6 per share from the preceding $9 while maintaining his market perform (read: hold) recommendation.
The reasoning behind Notter's aggressive move wasn't immediately apparent. As for Savageaux, he cited recent data indicating that telecoms are slowing down the pace of their spending in certain equipment categories. He feels that this is applicable to the entire telecom sector, from small fish to major component customers like AT&T.
Now what
Perhaps not coincidentally, CommScope announced the date for its next earnings release this week.
The company has set Thursday, May 4 for the unveiling of its first-quarter figures; this will occur shortly before market hours that day. Interestingly, as a group, analysts are projecting earnings growth for the company -- collectively, they are modeling more than 30% year-over-year improvement in per-share earnings, although they believe revenue will slip by 3%.
