Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Cuts Stake in United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P cut its holdings in shares of United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 629,195 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock after selling 4,877 shares during the quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P owned 0.73% of United States Cellular worth $39,463,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in USM. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 78.0% in the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 93,781 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $5,882,000 after buying an additional 41,093 shares during the period. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in United States Cellular in the 4th quarter worth approximately $332,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in United States Cellular by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 464,685 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $29,145,000 after purchasing an additional 51,362 shares during the last quarter. Vestcor Inc purchased a new stake in shares of United States Cellular during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $187,000. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 31,300 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,963,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. 18.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

United States Cellular Price Performance

Shares of United States Cellular stock opened at $69.93 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $5.94 billion, a PE ratio of -194.24 and a beta of 0.46. The business has a 50 day moving average of $65.21 and a 200 day moving average of $62.06. United States Cellular Co. has a 52 week low of $33.38 and a 52 week high of $70.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) last posted its earnings results on Friday, February 21st. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.10) by $0.15. United States Cellular had a negative net margin of 0.79% and a positive return on equity of 1.55%. The firm had revenue of $970.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $964.70 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that United States Cellular Co. will post 0.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of United States Cellular from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of United States Cellular from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th.

United States Cellular Profile

United States Cellular Corporation provides wireless telecommunications services in the United States. The company offers wireless services, including voice, messaging, and data services. It also provides wireless devices, such as handsets, tablets, mobile hotspots, home phones, and routers, as well as wireless essentials, including cases, screen protectors, chargers, and memory cards; and consumer electronics comprising audio, home automation, and networking products.