United States Cellular (NYSE:USM) Lowered to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of United States Cellular (NYSE:USM – Get Rating) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on USM. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on United States Cellular from $37.00 to $24.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered United States Cellular from an overweight rating to an underweight rating and cut their target price for the company from $33.00 to $20.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded United States Cellular from an underweight rating to a neutral rating and cut their target price for the company from $32.00 to $24.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, United States Cellular presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $22.67.

United States Cellular Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of United States Cellular stock opened at $22.70 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.77 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.70. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $22.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.37. United States Cellular has a 12-month low of $19.22 and a 12-month high of $32.65.

United States Cellular (NYSE:USM – Get Rating) last announced its earnings results on Friday, February 17th. The Wireless communications provider reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.38) by $0.05. United States Cellular had a return on equity of 0.65% and a net margin of 0.72%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that United States Cellular will post 0.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other United States Cellular news, Director Gregory P. Josefowicz sold 1,834 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.61, for a total transaction of $35,964.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,981 shares in the company, valued at $372,217.41. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of United States Cellular

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in USM. Millennium Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of United States Cellular by 345.6% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 299,551 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock worth $8,675,000 after purchasing an additional 232,322 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in United States Cellular by 6.7% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,184,908 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $56,874,000 after acquiring an additional 136,859 shares during the last quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. boosted its holdings in United States Cellular by 36.1% in the fourth quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 490,000 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $10,216,000 after acquiring an additional 130,000 shares during the last quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its holdings in United States Cellular by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 1,207,766 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $25,182,000 after acquiring an additional 62,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in United States Cellular by 181.3% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 89,798 shares of the Wireless communications provider’s stock valued at $1,872,000 after acquiring an additional 57,877 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 15.89% of the company’s stock.

About United States Cellular

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United States Cellular Corp. engages in the provision of wireless telecommunication services. Its products include smartphones, tablets, vehicle routers, and accessories. It offers Internet plans, prepaid and postpaid plans, and roaming services. The company was founded by Leroy T. Carlson in 1983 and is headquartered in Chicago, IL.