Smithfield Trust Co Lowers Stake in AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T)

Smithfield Trust Co reduced its position in shares of AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) by 5.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,969 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 1,457 shares during the quarter. Smithfield Trust Co’s holdings in AT&T were worth $569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in AT&T in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AT&T by 48.6% during the 4th quarter. Tradewinds Capital Management LLC now owns 1,314 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of AT&T during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE boosted its holdings in shares of AT&T by 169.2% during the 3rd quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 1,338 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the last quarter. 57.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AT&T Stock Performance

Shares of T stock opened at $26.19 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $24.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.72. The company has a market cap of $188.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.58, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.56. AT&T Inc. has a 12 month low of $15.94 and a 12 month high of $27.97.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last issued its earnings results on Monday, January 27th. The technology company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.06. AT&T had a net margin of 8.95% and a return on equity of 13.97%. Sell-side analysts predict that AT&T Inc. will post 2.14 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 3rd. Investors of record on Friday, January 10th were paid a dividend of $0.2775 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $1.11 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.24%. AT&T’s payout ratio is currently 74.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

T has been the topic of several recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on AT&T from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on AT&T in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $28.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of AT&T from $25.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Argus raised shares of AT&T from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $27.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of AT&T from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating, seventeen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $26.74.

About AT&T

AT&T, Inc is a holding company, which engages in the provision of telecommunications and technology services. It operates through the Communications and Latin America segments. The Communications segment offers wireless, wireline telecom, and broadband services to businesses and consumers located in the US and businesses globally.