AT&T (NYSE:T) Trading Up 0.4%

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)’s share price shot up 0.4% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $19.62 and last traded at $19.59. 3,067,088 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 92% from the average session volume of 36,315,738 shares. The stock had previously closed at $19.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on T. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Daiwa America raised shares of AT&T to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on AT&T in a research note on Monday, July 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $22.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank cut AT&T from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $22.06.

AT&T Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $18.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $17.71. The stock has a market cap of $138.71 billion, a PE ratio of 10.26, a PEG ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.70.

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

AT&T Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 10th were paid a $0.2775 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 10th. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.74%. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.68%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AT&T

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. grew 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 valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116 shares in the last quarter. Pineridge Advisors LLC purchased a new position in AT&T during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AT&T in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. American Capital Advisory LLC grew its stake in shares of AT&T by 107.5% in the 2nd 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. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AT&T in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.10% of the company’s stock.

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.