Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) Shares Up 4.1%

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS) shares shot up 4.1% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $17.89 and last traded at $17.89. 206,841 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 2,471,487 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $15.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 11th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Telephone and Data Systems in a report on Thursday, August 17th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $16.00 to $23.00 in a report on Friday, August 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Telephone and Data Systems from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $38.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $26.33.

Telephone and Data Systems Trading Up 3.5 %

The company has a market cap of $2.00 billion, a P/E ratio of -21.04 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.71, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.37. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $14.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $10.92.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 4th. The Wireless communications provider reported ($0.17) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by ($0.13). Telephone and Data Systems had a negative return on equity of 0.51% and a negative net margin of 0.53%. The company had revenue of $1.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.29 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.15 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. will post -0.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 15th will be given a $0.185 dividend. This represents a $0.74 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.16%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 14th. Telephone and Data Systems’s payout ratio is presently -87.06%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Telephone and Data Systems

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Telephone and Data Systems by 17.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 9,064 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 1,373 shares during the last quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 32,411 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 1,758 shares during the last quarter. Invesco LLC bought a new stake in Telephone and Data Systems during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $89,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 7.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 155,114 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,277,000 after acquiring an additional 10,098 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMA Wealth Inc. grew its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 63.6% during the 2nd quarter. IMA Wealth Inc. now owns 198,062 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,630,000 after acquiring an additional 76,968 shares during the last quarter. 95.40% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Telephone and Data Systems

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc, a telecommunications company, provides communications services in the United States. It operates through two segments: UScellular and TDS Telecom. The company offers wireless solutions to consumers, and business and government customers, including a suite of connected Internet of things (IoT) solutions, and software applications for monitor and control, business automation/operations, communication, fleet and asset management, smart water solutions, private cellular networks and custom, and end-to-end IoT solutions; wireless priority services and quality priority and preemption options; smartphones and other handsets, tablets, wearables, mobile hotspots, fixed wireless home internet, and IoT devices; and accessories, such as cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards, as well as consumer electronics, including audio, home automation and networking products.