AT&T (NYSE:T) Upgraded by Redburn Atlantic to Strong Sell

Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of AT&T (NYSE:T) to a strong sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Monday, Zacks.com reports.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on AT&T from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Friday, June 28th. Scotiabank lowered AT&T from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Barclays increased their target price on AT&T from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Daiwa America upgraded shares of AT&T to a hold rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a buy rating and set a $24.00 price objective on shares of AT&T in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AT&T currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $22.31.

AT&T Price Performance

AT&T stock opened at $21.35 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.48, a PEG ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.59. AT&T has a 52-week low of $14.12 and a 52-week high of $22.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $19.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $18.30.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $0.57 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.57. AT&T had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 14.16%. The business had revenue of $29.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.05 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. AT&T’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that AT&T will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

AT&T Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 10th were given a $0.2775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.20%. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.68%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AT&T

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in T. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in AT&T by 1,379.0% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 14,159,133 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $270,581,000 after buying an additional 13,201,774 shares during the last quarter. Kodai Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in AT&T in the 4th quarter worth about $152,109,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in AT&T by 43.3% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 21,853,624 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $414,563,000 after acquiring an additional 6,602,586 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in AT&T by 7.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 81,076,641 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $1,549,375,000 after acquiring an additional 5,592,123 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asset Management L.P. lifted its holdings in AT&T by 120.8% during the fourth quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 9,086,854 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $152,477,000 after purchasing an additional 4,970,954 shares during the last quarter. 57.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AT&T Company Profile

AT&T Inc provides telecommunications and technology services worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Communications and Latin America. The Communications segment offers wireless voice and data communications services; and sells handsets, wireless data cards, wireless computing devices, carrying cases/protective covers, and wireless chargers through its own company-owned stores, agents, and third-party retail stores.