Telephone and Data Systems Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:TDS)

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors bought 4,548 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 182% compared to the typical volume of 1,613 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Telephone and Data Systems from $36.00 to $34.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Telephone and Data Systems

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 2.6% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 12,569,591 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $201,365,000 after acquiring an additional 320,976 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,018,541 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $124,761,000 after purchasing an additional 507,512 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Telephone and Data Systems by 8.4% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,655,980 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $55,058,000 after purchasing an additional 206,819 shares in the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 4.4% during the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 2,092,042 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $33,515,000 after buying an additional 88,994 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Telephone and Data Systems by 34.0% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,950,298 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $40,430,000 after buying an additional 495,189 shares during the last quarter. 80.00% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Telephone and Data Systems Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of TDS stock opened at $22.96 on Friday. Telephone and Data Systems has a 1-year low of $13.69 and a 1-year high of $24.92. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The stock has a market cap of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.71 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $21.84 and a 200-day moving average of $19.27.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The Wireless communications provider reported ($0.13) EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.13). The company had revenue of $1.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.24 billion. Telephone and Data Systems had a negative net margin of 9.31% and a positive return on equity of 0.73%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.17) EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Telephone and Data Systems will post -0.43 earnings per share for the current year.

Telephone and Data Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.04 per share. This represents a $0.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. Telephone and Data Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -3.29%.

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.