Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom (NYSE:TEO) Shares Up 12.9% – Should You Buy?

Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom S.A. (NYSE:TEO) shares shot up 12.9% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $12.91 and last traded at $12.70. 439,405 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 99% from the average session volume of 221,023 shares. The stock had previously closed at $11.25.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

TEO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group set a $17.00 price target on Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $11.93.

Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $11.78 and a 200 day simple moving average of $9.89. The company has a market cap of $5.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -36.20 and a beta of 1.22.

Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom (NYSE:TEO) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The utilities provider reported ($0.36) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.49) by $0.13. The business had revenue of $1.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom had a negative net margin of 2.55% and a negative return on equity of 2.64%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom S.A. will post 1.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a special dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 3rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 24th were given a dividend of $0.0452 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 24th. Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently -14.29%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in TEO. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom during the first quarter worth about $379,000. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom by 321.7% during the 2nd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 104,726 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $925,000 after acquiring an additional 79,893 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new stake in Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $346,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $596,000. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $578,000.

Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom Company Profile

Telecom Argentina Stet – France Telecom (NYSE:TEO) is an integrated telecommunications provider based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Originally formed through the 1990 privatization of the state-owned Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones (ENTel), the company was initially backed by Italian state carrier STET and French operator France Télécom. Since its listing on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker TEO, Telecom Argentina has evolved into one of the country’s principal communications groups, offering a comprehensive portfolio of voice and data services.

The company’s core business activities span fixed-line telephony, mobile services, broadband internet and digital television.