Brokerages Expect United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM) to Post $0.45 Earnings Per Share

Wall Street analysts predict that United States Cellular Co. (NYSE:USM – Get Rating) will announce earnings of $0.45 per share for the current quarter, Zacks Investment Research reports. Three analysts have provided estimates for United States Cellular’s earnings, with the lowest EPS estimate coming in at $0.27 and the highest estimate coming in at $0.57. United States Cellular reported earnings of $0.69 per share during the same quarter last year, which indicates a negative year-over-year growth rate of 34.8%. The business is expected to issue its next earnings report on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that United States Cellular will report full year earnings of $1.12 per share for the current fiscal year, with EPS estimates ranging from $0.85 to $1.45. For the next fiscal year, analysts anticipate that the business will report earnings of $1.30 per share, with EPS estimates ranging from $0.60 to $2.00. Zacks Investment Research’s EPS averages are a mean average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that cover United States Cellular.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 17th. The Wireless communications provider reported $0.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.17 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $1.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.06 billion. United States Cellular had a return on equity of 3.45% and a net margin of 3.79%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.06 EPS.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut United States Cellular from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $37.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday. Raymond James lowered their price target on United States Cellular from $43.00 to $40.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on United States Cellular from $36.00 to $33.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on United States Cellular in a research note on Thursday, March 31st. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United States Cellular currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $38.14.

In other news, Director J Samuel Crowley sold 2,752 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.56, for a total value of $84,101.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael Irizarry sold 20,957 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $31.05, for a total value of $650,714.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CWM LLC boosted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 101.2% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 823 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 414 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of United States Cellular in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 163.1% in the 2nd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,913 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after buying an additional 1,186 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 8.3% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 5,380 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $172,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in United States Cellular in the 4th quarter valued at $202,000. 16.89% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NYSE:USM traded down $0.21 on Friday, hitting $30.21. 105,923 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 103,370. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.07 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $30.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $30.92. United States Cellular has a 52 week low of $25.44 and a 52 week high of $39.96.

United States Cellular Company Profile (Get Rating)

United States Cellular Corporation provides wireless telecommunications services in the United States. The company offers wireless services, including voice, messaging, and data services. It also provides devices, such as smartphones and other handsets, tablets, wearables, mobile hotspots, routers, and internet of things devices.

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