Telefônica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest

Telefônica Brasil S.A. (NYSE:VIV) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,880,000 shares, a growth of 34.0% from the February 28th total of 2,150,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 915,800 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days. Currently, 0.2% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Telefônica Brasil Price Performance

Shares of Telefônica Brasil stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $8.72. 603,540 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 837,125. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The business has a fifty day moving average of $8.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $8.84. The company has a market capitalization of $14.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.76. Telefônica Brasil has a 1 year low of $7.47 and a 1 year high of $10.41.

Telefônica Brasil (NYSE:VIV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.01. Telefônica Brasil had a net margin of 9.78% and a return on equity of 7.77%. The firm had revenue of $2.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.39 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that Telefônica Brasil will post 0.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Telefônica Brasil Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 25th were given a $0.0215 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 25th. This is a boost from Telefônica Brasil’s previous dividend of $0.02. Telefônica Brasil’s dividend payout ratio is 50.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VIV has been the subject of several analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Telefônica Brasil from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. New Street Research downgraded shares of Telefônica Brasil from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on shares of Telefônica Brasil from $10.40 to $9.20 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Barclays raised Telefônica Brasil from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and cut their target price for the company from $11.80 to $11.50 in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Telefônica Brasil from $10.60 to $9.20 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Telefônica Brasil has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $9.97.

Institutional Trading of Telefônica Brasil

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its position in shares of Telefônica Brasil by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 15,192,635 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $114,704,000 after purchasing an additional 1,053,218 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in Telefônica Brasil in the 3rd quarter valued at about $5,967,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in Telefônica Brasil by 283.2% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 592,234 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $4,471,000 after acquiring an additional 437,678 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP increased its stake in Telefônica Brasil by 151.9% in the fourth quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 686,792 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $5,185,000 after purchasing an additional 414,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its holdings in Telefônica Brasil by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 912,148 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $6,887,000 after buying an additional 367,975 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 5.16% of the company’s stock.

About Telefônica Brasil

Telefônica Brasil SA, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a mobile telecommunications company in Brazil. Its fixed line services portfolio includes local, domestic long-distance, and international long-distance calls; and mobile portfolio comprises voice and broadband internet access through 3G, 4G, 4.5G, and 5G, as well as mobile value-added and wireless roaming services.