AT&T Inc. $T Position Lessened by Vise Technologies Inc.

Vise Technologies Inc. cut its position in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) by 11.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 593,659 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 75,060 shares during the period. Vise Technologies Inc.’s holdings in AT&T were worth $14,485,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in AT&T during the second quarter worth $2,310,898,000. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of AT&T in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,223,364,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in AT&T in the second quarter worth about $960,695,000. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of AT&T by 5.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 334,273,613 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,919,464,000 after buying an additional 18,468,679 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of AT&T during the second quarter valued at $259,954,000. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AT&T Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of T opened at $21.45 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.87. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $24.36 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.96. AT&T Inc. has a 52 week low of $19.89 and a 52 week high of $29.43.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.60 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $32.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $31.69 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 13.41% and a net margin of 10.19%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that AT&T Inc. will post 2.39 earnings per share for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Investors of record on Monday, October 12th will be given a $0.2775 dividend. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

T has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research raised AT&T from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $29.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. BNP Paribas Exane raised AT&T from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $26.00 to $30.00 in a report on Monday, September 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of AT&T in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $33.00 price objective on shares of AT&T in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Argus reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $30.00 price objective on shares of AT&T in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $28.55.

AT&T News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AT&T this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fresh estimates indicate that building a nationwide wireless network would be expensive for SpaceX, reducing the near-term threat to established carriers such as AT&T. T-Mobile’s decision not to pursue an MVNO arrangement with SpaceX also suggests incumbents are not immediately embracing the proposed rival. T-Mobile, SpaceX and wireless competition article
• Positive Sentiment: Televisa expects AT&T’s planned purchase to strengthen its competitive position. A stronger strategic footprint could support AT&T’s long-term growth and operating leverage, although the transaction is expected to increase debt. Televisa expects AT&T purchase to strengthen position
• Neutral Sentiment: Wireless pioneer Ray Dolan suggested mobile internet could eventually become free if carriers monetize data collected from cell-tower sensing. The idea highlights a possible future revenue stream for AT&T, but it is speculative and unlikely to affect near-term earnings. Wireless carriers and free mobile internet article
• Negative Sentiment: AT&T’s dividend payments reportedly fell 46% while the company directed billions toward share repurchases. Buybacks can support per-share earnings and signal management confidence, but the reduced dividend is a drawback for income-focused investors and raises questions about whether capital returns are being shifted away from cash payouts. AT&T dividend payments and stock buybacks article

AT&T Profile

AT&T Inc (NYSE: T) is a telecommunications company that provides wireless communications, broadband, and related connectivity services. Its offerings include mobile voice and data plans, internet access, fiber broadband, fixed wireless services, and business communications solutions.

The company serves consumers, businesses, government agencies, and other organizations primarily in the United States. AT&T’s business operations include wireless network services, wireline connectivity, fiber-optic internet, voice services, and networking solutions designed to connect locations, devices, and applications.

AT&T traces its history to the Bell System and has operated under its current corporate name since 2005, following the acquisition of AT&T Corp.