AT&T (NYSE:T) Trading 0.2% Higher – Time to Buy?

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)’s stock price shot up 0.2% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $22.46 and last traded at $22.34. 5,100,754 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 35,419,715 shares. The stock had previously closed at $22.30.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

T has been the subject of several research reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of AT&T to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on AT&T from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded AT&T to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday, September 16th. Moffett Nathanson boosted their price target on shares of AT&T from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of AT&T to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.40.

AT&T Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $162.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.45, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $21.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $19.71.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $30.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $30.50 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 13.97% and a net margin of 7.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.64 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that AT&T Inc. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, October 10th were paid a dividend of $0.2775 per share. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.89%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 10th. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is currently 90.24%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AT&T

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its position in AT&T by 227.6% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 131,813 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 91,578 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in AT&T during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. increased its position in AT&T by 356.5% during the 2nd quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 1,429 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116 shares during the period. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE lifted its holdings in shares of AT&T by 169.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 1,338 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 841 shares during the period. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of AT&T by 107.5% in the second quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 807 shares in 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.