United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) Short Interest Down 16.9% in January

United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 552,900 shares, a decline of 16.9% from the December 31st total of 665,700 shares. Approximately 3.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 138,900 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on USM. Raymond James upgraded United States Cellular from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $86.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of United States Cellular from $75.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of United States Cellular from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday.

United States Cellular Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of United States Cellular stock traded down $0.67 on Friday, reaching $62.85. 121,073 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 106,150. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $62.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.87. The company has a market capitalization of $5.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -174.58 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.57. United States Cellular has a 52 week low of $32.01 and a 52 week high of $68.31.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) last issued its earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.13. United States Cellular had a negative net margin of 0.79% and a positive return on equity of 1.55%. The business had revenue of $922.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $940.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.26 earnings per share. United States Cellular’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that United States Cellular will post 0.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 28.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 143,021 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $7,816,000 after buying an additional 31,934 shares during the last quarter. Mariner Investment Group LLC bought a new position in United States Cellular in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,944,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in United States Cellular by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 52,688 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $2,879,000 after purchasing an additional 13,467 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in United States Cellular by 262.8% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 17,275 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 12,513 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of United States Cellular by 13.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 106,343 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $5,812,000 after purchasing an additional 12,219 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 18.03% of the company’s stock.

About United States Cellular

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.