AT&T (NYSE:T) Hits New 12-Month High – What’s Next?

AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $22.60 and last traded at $22.60, with a volume of 181166 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $22.54.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen lifted their price target on AT&T from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of AT&T from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of AT&T from $21.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Daiwa America raised AT&T to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson raised their target price on AT&T from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AT&T presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $23.40.

AT&T Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $21.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $158.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.98, a PEG ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.59.

AT&T (NYSE:T) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 the consensus estimate of $30.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.64 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that AT&T Inc. will post 2.22 EPS for the current year.

AT&T Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Trading of AT&T

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its position in AT&T by 227.6% during the 2nd quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 131,813 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 91,578 shares in the last quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. boosted its position in shares of AT&T by 356.5% during the second quarter. Riggs Asset Managment Co. Inc. now owns 1,429 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,116 shares in the last quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of AT&T by 107.5% in the 2nd quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 1,558 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 807 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd bought a new stake in shares of AT&T in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA raised its stake 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 worth $35,000 after buying an additional 1,192 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.