AT&T (NYSE:T) Trading Up 0.2% Following Dividend Announcement

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) shares were up 0.2% on Monday after the company announced a dividend. The stock traded as high as $22.07 and last traded at $21.95. Approximately 6,633,678 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 36,017,832 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.90.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $0.2775 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.02%. AT&T’s payout ratio is 59.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on T shares. Scotiabank cut shares of AT&T from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. BNP Paribas raised shares of AT&T from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 11th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Daiwa America raised shares of AT&T to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of AT&T from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $22.38.

AT&T Stock Up 0.6 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $158.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s 50-day moving average is $20.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $18.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $0.57 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.57. The company had revenue of $29.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.05 billion. AT&T had a net margin of 10.41% and a return on equity of 14.16%. AT&T’s revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.63 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that AT&T Inc. will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AT&T

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AT&T in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of AT&T in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AT&T by 227.6% in the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 131,813 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 91,578 shares during the last quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. increased its stake 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 buying an additional 1,116 shares during the period. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC increased its stake in AT&T by 107.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 807 shares during the period. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AT&T

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.