AT&T (NYSE:T) Shares Down 1.2% – Here’s Why

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)’s share price dropped 1.2% during trading on Wednesday. The stock traded as low as $20.52 and last traded at $20.6950. Approximately 54,474,536 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 11% from the average daily volume of 48,922,199 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.94.

Key AT&T News

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on T shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on AT&T from $33.00 to $31.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. KeyCorp reduced their target price on AT&T from $36.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $27.00 target price on AT&T in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of AT&T from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $29.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of AT&T from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $28.55.

AT&T Stock Up 2.5%

The stock has a market capitalization of $144.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.25. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $24.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $24.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The technology company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.05. AT&T had a net margin of 10.19% and a return on equity of 13.41%. The firm had revenue of $32.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $31.69 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that AT&T Inc. will post 2.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.2775 per share. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 9th. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.00%.

Institutional Trading of AT&T

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Robinswood Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of AT&T in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AT&T during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Addison Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AT&T during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. North Point Portfolio Managers Corp OH bought a new stake in shares of AT&T during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Matrix Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of AT&T by 331.8% in the second quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 1,494 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,148 shares in the last quarter. 57.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About AT&T

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.