AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $23.40.

T has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on AT&T from $25.00 to $24.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of AT&T from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Moffett Nathanson boosted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Scotiabank lowered shares of AT&T from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price target on AT&T from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th.

AT&T Stock Performance

NYSE:T opened at $23.10 on Tuesday. AT&T has a twelve month low of $15.94 and a twelve month high of $23.32. The company has a market capitalization of $165.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $22.04 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $20.00.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.57 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $30.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $30.50 billion. AT&T had a return on equity of 13.97% and a net margin of 7.42%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that AT&T will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th were given a $0.2775 dividend. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.81%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 10th. AT&T’s payout ratio is currently 90.24%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in T. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of AT&T by 227.6% in the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 131,813 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 91,578 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in AT&T in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. grew its position in AT&T by 356.5% in the second quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 1,429 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 1,116 shares in the last quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE raised its stake in shares of AT&T by 169.2% during the third quarter. Ritter Daniher Financial Advisory LLC DE now owns 1,338 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares during the period. Finally, American Capital Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of AT&T by 107.5% during the second quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. 57.10% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About AT&T

AT&T Inc provides telecommunications and technology services worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Communications and Latin America. The Communications segment offers wireless voice and data communications services; and sells handsets, wireless data cards, wireless computing devices, carrying cases/protective covers, and wireless chargers through its own company-owned stores, agents, and third-party retail stores.