AT&T (NYSE:T) Shares Up 0.9% – Still a Buy?

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) shares shot up 0.9% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $22.07 and last traded at $22.03. 4,931,706 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 35,566,105 shares. The stock had previously closed at $21.83.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

T has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on AT&T from $19.00 to $21.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of AT&T from $29.00 to $30.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Moffett Nathanson boosted their price target on shares of AT&T from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of AT&T from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $23.40.

AT&T Trading Up 1.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market cap of $158.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.91, a PEG ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.60. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $21.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $19.15.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by $0.03. AT&T had a net margin of 7.42% and a return on equity of 13.97%. The firm had revenue of $30.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that AT&T Inc. will post 2.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be given a $0.2775 dividend. This represents a $1.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. AT&T’s dividend payout ratio is currently 90.24%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AT&T

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. lifted its position in AT&T by 356.5% during the 2nd 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 during the period. American Capital Advisory LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in shares of AT&T during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Marquette Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AT&T in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA increased its position in AT&T by 176.6% during the 2nd quarter. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA now owns 1,867 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 1,192 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 57.10% of the company’s stock.

AT&T Company Profile

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.