MeritValue

COGENT COMMUNICATIONS HOLDINGS, INC.

CCOIdata completeness 100%17 fiscal years on file
The thesis, from the filings

COGENT COMMUNICATIONS HOLDINGS, INC. earns about 29% on invested capital, but has diluted owners by 2% over 5 years — worth asking whether the growth reaches owners. The applicable estimate puts fair value near $1.11 a share.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$589.8M1$599.6M2$940.9M3$1.04B3$975.8M3
Net income$48.2M4$5.15M5$1.27B6−$204.1M6−$182.2M6
Operating cash flow$170.3M7$173.7M8$17.3M9−$8.65M9−$10.6M9
Capital expenditure$69.9M10$79M11$129.6M12$195M12$187.6M12
Free cash flow (derived)$100.3M7$94.7M8−$112.3M9−$203.6M9−$198.1M9
Total debt$897.8M13$950M14$950M15$1.46B16$1.73B17
Cash & equivalents$319.6M18$223.8M19$75.1M20$198.5M21$148.5M21
Diluted shares47.0M47.2M47.8M47.6M47.9M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
−$13.32
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
−$38.01
Free cash flow it threw off
−$41.34
Debt you’d be carrying
$361.04

10 shares is a claim on −$13.32 of net worth that earned you −$38.01 and generated −$41.34 of cash last year, against $361.04 of debt.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
29% avg · 5y
FY21 43%FY22 33%FY23 88%FY24 -7%FY25 -13%

It earned an average 29% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+2% shares · 5y

Share count is up 2% over 5 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it. Total debt has risen 93% over the same window.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
Earnings Power Value
$1.11
assumptions (8)
  • riskFreeRate4.7%
  • equityRiskPremium5.0%
  • beta100.0%
  • equityWeight85.0%
  • costOfDebtSpread1.5%
  • taxRate21.0%
  • normalizedEarnings$5.15M
  • growthAssumed0.0%
Graham Number
not applicable
diluted EPS missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001410578-24-000091 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerIncludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001410578-25-000226 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerIncludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001104659-26-017968 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerIncludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001410578-24-000091 (ProfitLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001410578-25-000226 (ProfitLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001104659-26-017968 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001410578-24-000091 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001410578-25-000226 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001104659-26-017968 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001410578-24-000091 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001410578-25-000226 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001104659-26-017968 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001104659-22-027066 (LongTermDebt)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001104659-23-025123 (LongTermDebt)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001410578-24-000091 (LongTermDebt)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001410578-25-000226 (LongTermDebt)
  17. 10-K · period ending 2025-12-31 · accession 0001104659-26-017968 (LongTermDebt)
  18. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001104659-23-025123 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  19. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001410578-24-000091 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  20. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001410578-25-000226 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  21. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001104659-26-017968 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)