Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) Reaches New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE:TDS) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday. The stock traded as low as $30.71 and last traded at $33.07, with a volume of 2,253,243 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $34.07.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on TDS. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Telephone and Data Systems from $50.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Zacks Research lowered Telephone and Data Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Weiss Ratings cut Telephone and Data Systems from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on Telephone and Data Systems from $51.00 to $48.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Telephone and Data Systems presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $47.50.

Telephone and Data Systems Trading Down 2.9%

The firm has a market cap of $3.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.02 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 3.81, a current ratio of 3.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $35.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.93.

Telephone and Data Systems (NYSE:TDS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 7th. The Wireless communications provider reported $2.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.09 by $2.15. Telephone and Data Systems had a return on equity of 11.97% and a net margin of 33.20%. The firm had revenue of $309.28 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.78 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned ($0.05) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Telephone and Data Systems, Inc. will post -0.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Telephone and Data Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were issued a $0.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $0.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Telephone and Data Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 5.33%.

Institutional Trading of Telephone and Data Systems

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems during the third quarter worth approximately $2,705,000. Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 16.5% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 410,666 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $13,930,000 after buying an additional 58,169 shares in the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 310.4% in the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,060 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $742,000 after buying an additional 15,172 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Telephone and Data Systems during the 2nd quarter valued at $511,000. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its position in Telephone and Data Systems by 9.0% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 81,383 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $3,012,000 after purchasing an additional 6,692 shares during the last quarter. 80.00% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Telephone and Data Systems Company Profile

Telephone and Data Systems, Inc (NYSE:TDS) is a telecommunications holding company that provides broadband and communications services in communities across the United States. Its principal operating business is TDS Telecom, which serves residential, business and wholesale customers with internet access, fiber-optic and other broadband connections, voice services, video entertainment and related communications solutions.

TDS Telecom focuses on expanding high-speed broadband availability in rural and suburban markets.