Raymond James upgrades broadband provider WOW! to 'strong buy'

WideOpenWest

01/07/2021 13:10

** Raymond James upgrades U.S. broadband provider  WOW.N  to
"strong buy" from "market perform" after its "transformational
deal" to divest five legacy markets
    ** Shares up 5.26% at $21.8 premarket
    ** Brokerage says stock can now outperform "on lower
leverage, more greenfield builds and acceptance of the value
created with its rejuvenated edge-out campaign"
    ** Co said on Wednesday it has entered two separate
agreements to sell five of its service areas for about $1.8 bln
and plans to use proceeds from deal to reduce its debt
 urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL3N2OC2VT
    ** Transactions are expected to close in H2
    ** Brokerage says materialization of deals will make the
Street properly assign value to co
    ** "We believe the higher penetration and competitive
dynamics in the legacy Knology markets in the Southeast and
Midwest will leave WOW with a far better opportunity going
forward" - Raymond James
    ** Brokerage also sets PT of $30
    ** Separately, Stephens raises PT on WOW to $30 from $22
    ** 6 of 11 brokerages rate stock "buy" or higher and 5
"hold"; their median PT is $25 - Refinitiv
    ** Shares up 94% this year, as of Wednesday's close

 (Reporting by Tapanjana Rudra)
 ((Tapanjana.Rudra@thomsonreuters.com;))