Telefónica (NYSE:TEF) Upgraded to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Telefónica (NYSE:TEF) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on TEF. HSBC upgraded shares of Telefónica from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Hsbc Global Res raised Telefónica to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Telefónica Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE TEF opened at $4.42 on Thursday. Telefónica has a 52 week low of $3.82 and a 52 week high of $4.93. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $4.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.06 billion, a PE ratio of -17.00 and a beta of 0.66.

Telefónica Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 10th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 18th will be given a dividend of $0.1576 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 18th. This represents a dividend yield of 5.2%. Telefónica’s dividend payout ratio is presently -88.46%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of TEF. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Telefónica by 8.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,898,978 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,229,000 after purchasing an additional 146,259 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Telefónica by 0.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,258,793 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,300,000 after buying an additional 4,949 shares during the last quarter. Nia Impact Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Telefónica in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,645,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Telefónica by 81.2% during the second quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 696,563 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,933,000 after acquiring an additional 312,113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Telefónica by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 394,217 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,916,000 after acquiring an additional 19,539 shares during the period. 1.14% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Telefónica Company Profile

Telefónica, SA, together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services in Europe and Latin America. The company offers mobile and related services and products, such as mobile voice, value added, mobile data and internet, wholesale, corporate, roaming, fixed wireless, and trunking and paging services.